Seals concedes to Dold in 10th congressional race

Democrat Dan Seals conceded defeat this morning in the 10th Congressional District, which was up for grabs because of Republican Mark Kirk's run for U.S. Senate.

Seals' Republican opponent, Robert Dold of Kenilworth, had declared victory overnight but Seals declined to concede, saying it was not "impossible" that he could still prevail.

But this morning, Seals released a statement saying "now that we have more information, it has become clear that we were not victorious."
"As you may know, we were not prepared to concede this race last night," Seals said. "After this long journey, I wanted to make certain that every vote was counted.

"I'd also like to congratulate Bob Dold, who I know will work hard to represent the 10th district well."

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Dold had 51 percent of the vote to Seals' 49 percent.

The 10th district was the state's only open congressional seat. For the GOP, keeping Kirk's seat in GOP hands was key. Democrats had seen the open seat as a rare opportunity for a pickup on what for months had been shaping up nationally as a bleak election.

Dold's victory was among a string of GOP congressional victories in Illinois.

Incumbent Democrats Bill Foster of Batavia, Debbie Halvorson of Crete and Phil Hare of Rock Island conceded to Republican opponents. Another Democratic incumbent, Melissa Bean of Barrington was locked in a tight race with Republican Joe Walsh.

It was Seals' third try for the seat. Seals has been a consultant and Northwestern University lecturer, but Dold belittled his rival during the race by saying Seals had made running for Congress a job search.

Dold said this morning his grassroots campaign was successful because it gave voters a reason to vote for him and wasn't just an effort to get them to vote against Seals.

During an appearance on WGN-TV, Dold said he thinks his constituents want their representatives to work together in a bipartisan effort.