Missouri Republican U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin, who sparked a furor in August with comments about "legitimate rape," was defeated by Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill on Tuesday.

Until the rape comment, Akin was considered the favorite to beat McCaskill in a state that has trended Republican and voted for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday.

But the race reversed course after Akin's comment to a television station that women have natural defenses against pregnancy from "legitimate rape." The comment drew scorn from state and national Republican leaders who called on him to drop out of the race.

Akin apologized for his remarks but refused to withdraw. He regained support of some top Republicans but lost significant financial backing.

"There is something close to a consensus that he did himself in," said John Petrocik, a political science professor at the University of Missouri. "She was one of the most vulnerable Democrats."

McCaskill had drawn heat for failing to pay taxes on a private family plane, which did not sit well with state residents, Petrocik said.

People interviewed at St. Louis-area polling stations on Tuesday said Akin's rape comments were important to their vote.

Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy

"Seeing Akin's attitude toward woman in general, voting for him would be impossible," said Mary Mitchell Bartley, a St. Louis historic neighborhood preservationist who had backed previous Republican candidates.

Akin's loss was another blow to Republicans, who had hoped to make a net gain of four U.S. Senate seats to take the majority in the upper chamber.