In a race watched by national media for its implications within the Republican party, Bradley Byrne won the GOP primary runoff for the Congressional District 1 nomination Tuesday, beating Dean Young.

Byrne won Escambia County with 54.91 percent of the vote.

Byrne has served in the state Senate and on the state school board. Young, a businessman, was backed by Chief Justice Roy Moore and Tea Party supporters.

Byrne won 1,716 votes in Escambia County to Young’s 1,409 votes.

Byrne also won Baldwin County, while Young won Monroe and Washington counties and won Clarke County by just one vote, 424 to 423.

The winner will face Democrat Burton LeFlore for the chance to win Jo Bonner’s seat in Congress. Bonner resigned last summer to take a position with the University of Alabama system. Bonner endorsed Byrne in the race.

The political makeup of the six-county district heavily favors a Republican.