U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert stood as one of the few Republican holdouts, bracing against a wave of change from election day.

The Republican incumbent held a 2,855-vote advantage over Democratic challenger Darcy Burner as of 7:20 p.m. Thursday

Initial returns on election night showed Burner leading with a 57-43 percent split, but Reichert, Auburn-R, had closed the margin by the next morning.

A of 7:20 p.m. on Thursday, Reichert was ahead 111,584 votes to Burner’s 108,729, a 51-49 percent split.

“We expected going into election day that this was going to be a very close race, and that’s where we’re at,” said Burner campaign spokesman Sandeep Kaushik. “There’s still a lot of counting to be done, and we’ll just have to see how it plays out.”

Reichert was holding a significant lead with Pierce County voters – who make up 20 percent of the 8th District – and he was making gains in King County, although lagging behind by 2,200 votes.

“We’re very encouraged by what we’re seeing,” said Amanda Halligan, a spokeswoman for the Reichert campaign.

Reichert defeated Burner by 300 votes in King County in the 2006 election. The Burner camp was encouraged by its early leads in the county, according to Kaushik.

“If that carries to the end, there’s a very good chance we’ll win,” he said.

Joshua Adam Hicks can be reached at jhicks@bellevuereporter.com or 425-453-4290.