WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Former Manhattan Mayor Jim Sherow has won the Democratic nomination in the 1st District of Kansas.

Sherow is a history professor at Kansas State University. He defeated Bryan Whitney, a political science student at Wichita State University, to capture his party’s nomination.

U.S. Rep. Tim Huelskamp ran unopposed two years ago for re-election, so this election marks the first contested congressional race since redistricting. This time Huelskamp not only faced a primary challenge, but the two Democrats also sought their party’s nomination.

The predominantly rural agricultural district known as the “Big First” covers a sweeping swath of western and central Kansas that since re-districting now includes the Manhattan and Fort Riley.