Update: U.S. Senate candidate Jason Lewis’s surgery was successful, according to his campaign. Manager Tom Szymanski says that doctors expect Lewis to be released within a couple of days, depending on his recovery.

Original story follows:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jason Lewis was rushed into emergency surgery Monday for a severe internal hernia, just eight days before the election, his campaign announced. The condition is life-threatening if not treated quickly, the campaign said in a statement.

Lewis, a one-term former congressman best known to Minnesota voters from his days as a conservative talk radio host, is challenging incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Tina Smith.

Campaign manager Tom Szymanski said in the statement that Lewis experienced severe abdominal pain early Monday morning and was taken to an emergency room.

“Prior to being taken to the operating room, Jason was in good spirits, optimistic, and true to form, he was speculating about when he could resume campaigning, eager to continue fighting for his fellow Minnesotans,” Szymanski said.

He said the campaign would release further information as it became available. Smith tweeted well-wished to Lewis for “a successful surgery and a speedy recovery.”

By — Destiny Wiggins