Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna conceded the race for governor Friday, with his campaign manager saying the new vote totals made it clear he couldn’t overcome Democratic former congressman Jay Inslee’s lead, according to media reports.
New vote totals released Friday evening kept Inslee ahead of McKenna, 50.8 percent to 49.2 percent.
The Associated Press reported that McKenna called Inslee on Friday night to congratulate him.
At a news conference his his campaign headquarters, Inslee said McKenna was gracious in defeat.
"I know he and his supporters worked extremely hard. We had a good discussion about the issues and now it's time for all of us to unite across the state of Washington to build a working Washington," Inslee said, according to the Seattle Times.
Washington State Democrats Chair Dwight Pelz said he was thrilled the issue was settled and that Inslee could move forward with his transition into the governor's office.
"There is much work to do, but Jay Inslee is the right leader for Washington," Pelz said in a statement.
"Rob McKenna ran a great campaign, and proved to be a very strong candidate in yet another tough contest. But we've always thought Jay had the best vision for our state."
Inslee had held a slight lead since Tuesday. McKenna's concession came just a day after his campaign manager, Randy Pepple, posted a video explaining why he thought McKenna would be able to overcome Inslee's lead.
