LOS ANGELES, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Dennis Hof, an American brothel owner who died last month, still won an election to the state legislature of the western U.S. Nevada on Tuesday.

Hof, who died unexpectedly on Oct. 16 at the age of 72 but his name remained on the ballot due to the state law, defeated Democratic opponent Lesia Romanov with 62 percent of the vote in Nevada's 36th Assembly District, local media reported Wednesday.

The victory will ensure that the seat stays in the hands of the Republican Party. Officials of the Republican Party had urged their supporters to still vote for Hof to capture the seat in the heavily Republican district. Hof's replacement will be appointed by local officials.

Hof was best known as the owner of several legal brothels in Nevada and he was also a reality TV star featured in the HBO series Cathouse, which ran from 2002 to 2014.

It is rare but not unprecedented for a candidate to win an election posthumously in the United States. Mel Carnahan, the 51st governor of U.S. state of Missouri, was elected posthumously to the U.S. Senate after killed in a small plane crash during election campaign in 2000. His widow was then appointed to the seat and served until November 2002.