Sen. Burns called Senator-Elect Jon Tester Thursday to concede defeat.
Burns, a three-term senator whose campaign was troubled by verbal gaffes and voter discontent, congratulated Tester, a farmer and state legislator.
“I stand ready to help as Montana transitions to a new United States Senator,” Burns said in a statement provided to the AP. “We fought the good fight and we came up just a bit short. We’ve had a good 18 years and I am proud of my record.”
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You did it!
After a long night, all your hard work to bring real change to the U.S. Senate paid off — Jon Tester has won the race against incumbent Senator Conrad Burns.
The Billings Gazette reports on this morning’s victory rally in Great Falls:
The flat-topped farmer was introduced at the press conference by his wife, Sharla, who said, “My husband, my soul mate, your U.S. senator, Papa Jon Tester.”
Tester, who got only two and one-half hours of sleep as he waited for election returns in the nail-biting race, said he intends to return to his farm in Big Sandy to get some sleep. He would wait until Thursday before starting to put together his U.S. Senate staff….
“Now is the time for working together,” Tester said. “Now is the time to put politics aside. Now is the time to roll up our sleeves and get some things done.”
“This is a great time,” he added. “It’s really a great time to empower the middle class….
“We were successful, and now it’s time to produce, to work for regular people, to work for regular Montanans, to move this country forward,” Tester said.
Leave your comments for Jon in the thread below.
With polls now closed in Montana, supporters are gathering at the Heritage Inn here in Great Falls to await returns. We’ll update you as they come in…..
[Jon Tester sent the following email to Montana voters today. GOTV!]
After months of working together to build our grassroots campaign for change, it all comes down to today.
Please vote today – and bring as many friends, family members or coworkers with you to the polls as you can. This election may come down to just a few votes, but I believe that if we all work together today, we will win.
To find your polling place, call our Voter Hotline at 1-877-495-9215 or click here:
http://www.testerforsenate.com/vote-for-jon-tester
If you’re volunteering today to help us “Get Out the Vote” – I thank you. If you haven’t yet volunteered but your schedule loosens up, we need your help until everyone has voted this evening, so please contact your local Field office and pitch in. Even just a few hours will be key to victory tonight:
http://www.testerforsenate.com/volunteer-for-jon-tester/
Thank you for everything you’ve done and continue to do today to help us make Washington, D.C. look a lot more like Montana. I am so humbled by all of your support and dedication both online and on the ground over the last eighteen months. As they say, we have miles to go before we sleep.
Jon Tester
P.S. Please take a moment to call or email everyone you know who might vote today, and offer to take them to the polls. You could make the difference between someone voting and not voting today. It could be the difference between change and status quo. — JT
