Dan Donovan Concedes To Max Rose After Tight Congressional Race

NEW YORK CITY — Congressman Dan Donovan conceded the race to Democratic challenger Max Rose in the 2018 midterm election Tuesday.

Donovan, the city's lone Republican congressman representing Staten Island and southern Brooklyn, admitted defeat on NY1 at about 10:10 p.m., a little more than an hour after polls closed in New York City.

"I congratulate him on a hard-fought victory," Donovan said in his concession speech. "But it has been an amazing ride for our family."

Donovan was 4 points behind with 78,607 votes and while Rose had pulled in 52 percent of the votes with 85,401, according to NY1.

Dan Donovan, an open supporter of President Donald Trump, was locked in a surprisingly close race with his Democratic challenger for New York's 11th Congressional District, which supported Trump in 2016.

Donovan tried to leverage his relationship with the controversial leader, who even stepped in to campaign for Donovan, the New York Post reported.

But ultimately Rose, an U.S. veteran who served in Afghanistan, was able to claim victory with his promise of bipartisan representation and appeal to independent voters.

Photo of Max Rose (left) courtesy of Max Rose For Congress and of Congressman Dan Donovan (right) by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images