Senator Bob Casey Concedes Reelection Bid to Republican David McCormick Amidst Controversial Ballot Count
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — After a protracted election process marked by contentious legal battles and allegations from both parties, Democratic Senator Bob Casey has officially conceded his reelection bid to Republican David McCormick. The concession came on Thursday, more than two weeks post-Election Day, as a statewide recount confirmed that McCormick maintained a lead of approximately 16,000 votes out of nearly 7 million total ballots counted.
The ballot-counting process drew significant attention, witnessing hours of election board discussions, lawsuits, and public outcry over the handling of ballots. Republicans accused Democrats of attempting to undermine the integrity of the election by counting “illegal votes,” while Casey’s campaign alleged that Republicans were working to suppress votes to prevent a comeback.
In his concession statement, Casey expressed the importance of voter participation, stating he had called McCormick to congratulate him and noting that Pennsylvania voters have been heard. The Associated Press declared McCormick the winner of the race on November 7, asserting that not enough uncounted ballots remained in regions where Casey was leading to bridge the gap.
While Pennsylvania law allows for an automatic statewide recount when the margin falls within 0.5%, officials now predict only minor fluctuations in the total vote counts. A significant setback for Casey came when the state’s highest court dismissed his campaign’s attempts to include mail-in ballots that lacked appropriate handwritten dates on their envelopes in the final tally.
With this victory, Republicans are poised to hold a 53-47 majority in the U.S. Senate next year.
For more updates, follow reporter Marc Levy on Twitter at @timelywriter.
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