Sen. Saxby Chambliss won a runoff election in Georgia Tuesday against Democrat Jim Martin ending Democrats’ chances of controlling a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority in the House.

With 95 percent of the precincts reporting, state election officials said Chambliss won 58 percent while Martin won 42 percent of the vote. Election officials reported that about 2 million people voted in the runoff compared with 3.7 million who voted on Election Day.

The runoff was held because neither Chambliss nor Martin captured 50 percent of the votes cast on Election Day to be declared the winner of the race as required by Georgia law. 

Both campaigns from spent millions of dollars on attack ads and enlisted thousands of volunteers to help with get-out-the-vote efforts after the runoff was announced. Chambliss trotted out former Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin to campaign on his behalf across the state Monday.

President-elect Barack Obama recorded a radio ad for Martin and Al Gore and former President Bill Clinton campaigned for Martin prior to the runoff.

There is still an undecided contest in Minnesota where Democrat Al Franken and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman are locked in a fierce battle for the state’s coveted Senate seat. A recount is currently underway, but Minnesota’s state canvassing board won’t declare a winner for another couple of weeks.  

Franken’s campaign attorney said Tuesday the former Saturday Night Live comedian trails Coleman by just 50 votes, according to their own internal tally.

However, Coleman’s campaign contends the incumbent leads by a few hundreds votes. 

The Democrats have 58 seats in the House, a majority not held by either party since the 1970s, which includes Independents Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders who caucus with the Democrats.