Forsyth County voters delivered District 27 state Sen. Michael Williams his first re-election win on Tuesday night during the Nov. 8 general election.

Williams earned 73,378 votes, about 78.4 percent of the total, defeating Democratic challenger Daniel Blackman, who earned about 20,129 votes, about 21.5 percent.

Williams, who has a professional background in accounting and business, was first elected in 2014 and did not face a challenge earlier this year in the Republican primary.

“It’s very exciting,” Williams said. “We’re very happy to be serving the people in the 27th District again for two years and just looking forward to it.”

Williams called the evening a “huge win” and said he will work in his second term to keep government out of people’s lives and from infringing on their freedom.

He is the vice-chairman of the state Senate’s ethics committee, secretary of the state and local governmental operation committee and a member of the finance, higher education, and public safety committees.

District 27 makes up the majority of Forsyth County, except a small portion in northwest Forsyth.

Williams complemented Blackman for his campaign.

“I know he is a good man,” Williams said. “He worked his tail off. He is a man who truly loves this county and this state, and I have a lot of admiration for him as a person.”

Blackman, a former public service commission candidate who has more than 10 years of experience in public and intergovernmental affairs, said he is proud of what his campaign accomplished and will continue pushing toward the goals set in his campaign.

“We definitely expanded the conversation,” Blackman said. “I think we knew what we were up against, there hasn’t been a Democrat running for this particular seat in 20 years, and we feel that we’ve made a lot of progress in the county to open up the conversation and the discussion.”

He said he would consider running for office again after praying and discussing with his family.