U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde, R-Wis., conceded to Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., in a video post on X Monday morning. Hovde’s remarks come after a post last week in which he admitted to losing the election but did not concede.
Though Baldwin’s and Hovde’s margin of votes is low enough to request a recount, in his concession, Hovde said a recount would be useless. Hovde drew attention to a batch of Milwaukee absentee ballots delivered in the early morning of Nov. 6, of which 90% were for Baldwin.
According to Reuters, the ballots were received under normal Wisconsin counting procedures and the late-night count was communicated to the public before Election Day.
In a statement, the Milwaukee Election Commission said Hovde’s claims on the integrity of the election are baseless, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Hovde also criticized the press, who he said do not care to fact-check Baldwin’s advertisements that make claims about his stances on abortion and social security.
Some X users replied to Hovde’s post encouraging him to run for governor, but in his video, Hovde said he is unsure of future plans and will take a break before returning to work as a businessman.
“As for my future, I don’t know what it holds,” Hovde said in the video. “… One thing is certain, I will always fight for the country and state that I love and work to restore the American dream.”
