Republicans have had their eyes on Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District seat for years and now they have it.

Republican Keith Rothfus pulled the upset, defeating Democratic incumbent Mark Critz in Tuesday's election. Rothfus won by 10,000 votes. Critz carried Cambria County but lost Somerset County, which has long been considered his home turf.

Rothfus becomes the first Republican elected to Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District in four decades. Critz took office in 2010 finishing the term of his late former boss,  Democrat Jack Murtha, who held the seat since 1974.

There's no question Murtha did a lot for the Johnstown area. Critz promised to carry on that legacy, but now the question is if Rothfus will have the same attitude. He's from suburban Pittsburgh and only became eligible to be elected because of redistricting. But he's said he'll keep Johnstown at the top of his priority list.

It was a heated, sometimes ugly, race. But Rothfus made sure to make Crtiz part of his victory speech Tuesday night. He said Critz has done a lot for the people of the 12th district and he hopes for a smooth transition into office.

Rothfus supporters packed into campaign headquarters in PittsburghTuesday night anxiously watching the large projection screens as the votes came in. Early numbers suggested it was an extremely close race, coming down to Allegheny, Somerset and Westmoreland counties, all big wins for Rothfus.

As he took to the stand to declare his victory he thanked God, his family and his supporters and then he got straight to the issues he's hoping to fix.

"We have some real concerns about the economy and where things are going, the role of government, the debt that our kids and grandkids are taking on and the threats to Medicare," said Rothfus.

It was a very different speech in Johnstown from Critz.

"The thought is once this seat leaves, the Johnstown area that we'll never see another congress person from this area," said Critz. "(The thought is) that the district will be a Pittsburgh district. We have some work to do."

But Rothfus promises to work with Critz and Jason Altmire, who represented the fourth district before most of it combined with the 12th. That's when Altmire's seat was effectively eliminated.

"They both worked both who have worked very hard for their constituents and I will seek to emulate the efforts they made with their constituents," said Rothfus. "I look forward to a smooth transition with both of their offices."

It was a highly contested and costly race ending in celebration for the Pittsburgh native and a big upset for Johnstown.

"I've got to transition the office to Keith as he gets sworn in to make sure that we take care of our constituents," said Critz.

Rothfus told the media Tuesday that he's got a lot of work to do but he said he does not plan on becoming a career politician to get it done. He said if he's re-elected through six terms, that should be more than enough time.