INDIANAPOLIS - Democrat Glenda Ritz clinched the Superintendent of Public Instruction position in Indiana, defeating incumbent Republican Tony Bennett.

With 84 percent of precincts reporting, Ritz had earned 52 percent of the vote.

Ritz, a lifelong educator backed by teachers unhappy with Bennett's sweeping education overhaul, has pledged to roll back many of Bennett's changes, including a reading test that third-graders must pass to advance to fourth grade.

Ritz's victory was seen as a victory for Indiana teachers who have felt Bennett blamed them for school failures.

Many educators have opposed changes under Bennett that include expanding charter school access, limiting teachers' collective bargaining and basing teacher pay raises on annual evaluations.

Ritz ran on a platform calling for an independent audit of the state's system of grading public schools' progress.

Ritz said the grades approved by the state board of education don't truly measure individual student achievement. She calls the measuring system "artificial."

Bennett said in his concession speech Tuesday night, "I have no regrets."