Mandi Mooney
Online Managing Editor
November 3, 2004
After a long night of waiting on both sides, Senator John Kerry called President George W. Bush earlier this morning to concede the presidential race. Bush received a phone call in the Oval Office just after 11 a.m. when Kerry offered his congratulations after realizing he would not be able to capture the victory. Kerry conceded the race today after reviewing voting results that made it clear Bush would carry Ohio, the battle ground state that Kerry needed in order to win the race. Kerry won 48% of the popular vote and 252 electoral votes
Bush became the first presidential candidate to win more than 50 percent of the popular vote since his father in 1988, President Bush has been declared the d winner of the 2004 presidential campaign. Bush won 51.1% of the popular vote and 274 out of the 270 needed electoral votes to be elected to his second term in office.
Kerry offered his concession speech early this afternoon and asked the country to overcome its divisions and unite as a strong nation.
In a speech to the nation Wednesday afternoon, Bush said, "America has spoken, and I'm humbled by the trust and the confidence of my fellow citizens. With that trust comes a duty to serve all Americans. And I will do my best to fulfill that duty every day as your president."
Exit polls reported that 22 percent of voters said that moral values such as gay marriages and abortion were the most important issues in the campaign, not the economy, terrorism or the war in Iraq as was expected.