Thread: Hayworth concedes to Mitchell

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/ ... 14-ON.html

Hayworth concedes to Mitchell

Robbie Sherwood
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 14, 2006 04:51 PM


U.S. Rep. J.D. Hayworth conceded Tuesday to Democratic challenger Harry Mitchell, one week after the Nov. 7 election.

His concession puts at least a temporary end to a 12-year political career.

Mitchell led Hayworth by about 6,000 votes and four percentage points on election night. But Hayworth had refused to concede because there were still tens of thousands of uncounted early ballots in Congressional District 5 and he hoped that returns from a strong Republican early-voting program would close the gap.

The gap did close slightly over the first few days of counting, but on Monday and Tuesday, Mitchell actually widened his lead by nearly 1,000 votes.

Shortly after the results of Tuesday's counting were released, Hayworth released a printed statement:

"While there are still tens of thousands of votes left to count, it has become apparent that it is unlikely we'll get enough of these votes to win the election. We were confident we would close the gap as the early ballots were counted, and we have, but at this point it doesn't appear to be enough. Of course, if the result of the count changes, obviously I will abide by the will of the people.

"Therefore let me congratulate Harry for his likely victory in what was a tough campaign and wish him the best of luck. I would also like to thank my supporters and the thousands of volunteers who devoted their time to my campaigns over the years. I would be remiss if I did not single out the incredible efforts of so many volunteers in this most recent campaign.

I also want to thank my hard-working staff both here in Washington and in the district - those who served in an official capacity and those who worked on the campaign.

"One group - the group closest to me - never got time off during my 12 years in public office - my family. To my wife, Mary and our three children I say: Thanks for standing by me. Leaving the House isn't so bad, since I get to come home.

But most of all, I would like to thank the people of Arizona I represented for over a decade. Thank you for the honor of serving in the Congress of the United States."

Mitchell was in Washington on Tuesday, undergoing freshman orientation and could not immediately be reached for comment. As of Tuesday, Mitchell had 92,648 votes to Hayworth's 86,149, or a 50.2 percent to 46.7 percent margin.

Maricopa County Election officials hope to finish counting votes by Friday.

I'm so flippin' mad I could fill this whole page with a bunch of mod edits.

DITTO!

Losing J.D. Hayworth is heartbreaking. He's a good man.

The loss of the republican congress and senate can be blamed directly on the Bush administration. Voters could no longer tolerate the incompetence and lies coming out of Washington DC.

Sorry illegal's, don't flatter yourselves into believing that you swayed the vote. You had little or nothing to do with it. 80 plus percent of America still wants you out of the country, and we will not back down to your cries of racism while you try to steal us blind. Your days of riding on the backs of the American taxpayer are numbered.

I think that illegals have hijacked our elections.

I think alot of AZ voters were also p-o'd about some anti-smoking propositions. Cancer sticks aren't worth throwing away your state.

Originally Posted by Newmexican

I think that illegals have hijacked our elections.

That's what I think too.

This country has to get serious about the integrity of our voting system.

Hayworth was also connected to taking kickbacks from Abrahmoff, voted for CAFTA and he strongly supported H1B visa increases. With that said, he will be sorely missed.