Election Results 2014: Mark Warner Claims Victory in Tight Senate Race

After close races in 2013, Virginia voters again provided a high-drama election night, with Republican challenger Ed Gillespie still holding out hope of unseating incumbent Sen. Mark Warner.

Warner claimed victory late Tuesday night after spending hours waiting for Democratic strongholds on the coast and in Fairfax finally to add enough votes to put him over the top, if not by much.

“It was a hard fought race. It went a little longer than we thought,” Warner told supporters according to The Washington Post. “I want to congratulate Ed Gillespie. He ran a hard fought campaign.”

Gillespie told supporters Tuesday night that there were still votes to count.

As of midnight, Warner was ahead by less than 13,000 votes of more than 1.2 million counted so far in the race. Warner enthusiastically addressed his supporters late in the night, but gave no indication of a concession from Gillespie.

• See more results at the Virginia Department of Elections.

Virginia law allows a recount if the difference is less than 1 percent.

Often painting himself as an independent voice in Washington, Warner has frequently noted his GOP endorsements and the issues where he has disagreed with the President Barack Obama.

Gillespie’s challenge had been considered a long-shot, but the Republican had closed the gap in recent weeks. In one ad, Gillespie embraced Warner’s bi-partisan cred, but claimed, “Washington has changed Mark Warner.”

Photo: Ed Gillespie on Facebook