Excited and humbled were two words Doyle Heffley used to describe his emotions on Tuesday night.

The Lower Towamensing Township resident was all smiles when he received word of his successful re-election bid for state representative in the 122nd district.Heffley, a Republican, earned a third term by defeating Patti Borger, a Mahoning Township resident and Democrat.Heffley garnered 10,275 votes to Borger's 5,654 votes.Shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m. Heffley celebrated with family and supporters at the Bowmanstown Fire Company."I'm excited and really humbled by the support we received from the residents of Carbon County," Heffley said. "The vote of confidence means a great deal to me."The election capped a roller coaster year for Heffley.His daughter was involved in a car crash that seriously injured two other teenagers."It has been a very trying year for our family and to wrap everything up with these results is very encouraging," he said.Following his victory, Heffley said he plans to work hard on all the issues he spoke about during his campaign."I go at everything 110 percent all of the time and I plan to continue that work ethic," he said.Property tax and pension reform head that list. He said he supports House Bill 76, which would eliminate property taxes in favor of increased sales and income tax.On pension reform, Heffley supports a hybrid plan for new state employees."That would save the state over $11 billion," he said. "I think it is risky to say we'll float a bond to pay down pension debt. Right now, we need to stop the bleeding."Heffley was first elected in 2010, receiving 56.3 percent of the vote to defeat Democrat Justin Yaich. His re-election campaign was successful in 2012 when he claimed 59.1 percent of the vote to top Democrat Ronald Rabenold.He was unopposed in the 2014 Republican primary election.Borger, who owns and operates a tree farm in Mahoning Township with her husband, Kevin, was making her first run for office.She did not immediately return a call seeking comment.The campaign was a tough one, Heffley said, noting that he took nothing for granted until the numbers were finalized Tuesday."The indicators we got early on during the campaign were positive, but you never do know with those poll numbers," he said. "It really is encouraging to get the vote of confidence from our voters. It is greatly appreciated."Before entering politics, Heffley worked as a trucking consultant.He currently serves on the House game & fisheries, human services, tourism and recreational development, and transportation committees.Republicans went into the election with a 111-92 lead in the House and a 27-23 margin in the Senate.According to The Associated Press, Republicans could expand their margin as they picked up state House seats in the Williamsport, Wilkes-Barre and Pocono regions.Republicans were victorious in three other area races.Rosemary Brown won re-election in the 189th district, which covers part of Monroe and Pike counties. She defeated Liz Forrest by getting 63.08 percent of the vote.Jack Rader received 60.09 percent of the vote to defeat Hope Smith in the 176th district, which covers parts of Monroe County.Rader will fill the seat vacated by Mario Scavello, who received 59.34 percent of the vote to defeat Mark Aurand for the 40th Senatorial district seat. The district covers portions of Monroe and Northampton counties.Vote totals will be certified beginning later this week.