Senator Bob Casey, a three-term Pennsylvania Democrat, on Thursday conceded to his Republican rival, David McCormick, amid a recount in their marquee Senate contest.
The New York Times has not yet called the race, which went to a recount because Mr. McCormick led Mr. Casey by less than half of a percentage point in an initial tally. A former hedge fund executive, Mr. McCormick channeled the sour national mood into what appears set to be a stunning victory over a well-established incumbent.
“This race was one of the closest in our commonwealth’s history,” Mr. Casey said in a statement. “I am grateful to the thousands of people who worked to make sure every eligible vote cast could be counted.”
Mr. Casey, a mild-mannered Scranton native and a son of a popular former governor of the state, is a Pennsylvania institution. He ran as a populist, lashing big corporations for what he called “greedflation” and promising to fight for middle- and working-class Americans.
But he faced increasingly difficult headwinds as the presidential race tightened.
Mr. McCormick, a West Point graduate who lost the G.O.P. Senate primary in 2022, found his footing in seeking to tie Mr. Casey to Vice President Kamala Harris in the closely divided state. In particular, he highlighted her past support for banning fracking, though she no longer holds that view and Mr. Casey opposes fracking bans.
Mr. McCormick, whose wife, Dina Powell McCormick, served in Donald J. Trump’s administration, did not shy away from appearing with the former president. But he also held events with more traditional Republicans, like Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and G.O.P. presidential candidate. And he tried to make inroads in the moderate Philadelphia suburbs that have recoiled from the Trump-led Republican Party.
Yet Mr. Casey was regarded as one of his party’s stronger incumbents, and Mr. McCormick had significant liabilities.
Democrats used conservative positions that Mr. McCormick had taken during his 2022 primary race against him, especially on abortion rights, an issue he tried to mitigate by emphasizing his opposition to a national abortion ban.
Democrats also cast him as a rich man who was out of touch with the needs of working people. And he faced scrutiny of his business record and questions about his residency.
The Associated Press reported in 2023 that while he owned a home in Pittsburgh, public records showed that he still lived in and rented a $16 million mansion in Westport, Conn.
And while Mr. McCormick had repeatedly claimed that he grew up on a family farm, The New York Times reported that he had given a misleading impression about key aspects of his upbringing.
But Mr. McCormick, portraying Mr. Casey as an ineffectual career politician who had been in Washington too long, was able to tap into deep frustration with the Democratic White House and Senate to claim the mantle of change.
“I want to thank the people of Pennsylvania for granting me the privilege of serving them for 28 consecutive years in public office,” Mr. Casey said in his statement. “Thank you for the trust you have placed in me for all these years.”
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