US elections: Former news anchor whose girlfriend was shot dead on live TV wins seat from NRA-backed incumbent

Chris Hurst was living with fellow journalist Alison Parker when she and cameraman Adam Ward were killed by a former co-worker while reporting for WDBJ-TV

A former Virginia news anchor whose journalist girlfriend was fatally shot during a live broadcast in 2015 has defeated an NRA-endorsed incumbent for a seat in the statehouse.

Chris Hurst was living with fellow journalist Alison Parker when she and cameraman Adam Ward were killed by a former co-worker while reporting for WDBJ-TV.

After the shooting, Mr Hurst became the public face of the grieving Roanoke station.

In February, the Pennsylvania native quit his TV job and moved to Blacksburg to run for a House seat, running on a strong gun control platform.

He said the shooting had sparked a need for a "change of scenery".

He received backing from several gun-control groups, but his main campaign focus was education, health care and the environment.

"Anybody who sees me as a single-issue candidate because my girlfriend was killed with a gun needs to look at my body of work over the past seven years here and see how many different topics I’ve covered and have been curious and interested in," he said at the time.

He beat three-year Republican incumbent Joseph Yost on Tuesday.

Additional reporting by agencies