Dear Friends and Supporters,
I
am announcing my decision about whether or not to file a contest of the
August 7th Republican Primary for the Fourth Congressional District.
When I started this campaign, my goal was to offer the citizens of the
4th District a choice in who to represent them in Congress. I presented
my plan to offer conservative, effective leadership, and my opponents
offered theirs. And after over 75,000 votes were cast in the Republican
Primary, less than 40 votes separated the incumbent Congressman and me.
Our
campaign staff and volunteers have been diligently gathering and
analyzing information from all 16 counties in the District. Through the
Secretary of State’s Office, as well as directly, we have communicated
with the County Election Commissions. Our staff has attended many of
the meetings at which Election Commissions counted provisional ballots,
as well the meetings at which the Election Commissions certified the
votes in all of the August 7th elections. A great deal of information
has come to me through formal and informal sources.
For
example, there were votes by people who were not on the rolls and
should have cast provisional ballots, but voted on machines so there was
no way to determine whether those were legal votes. There were voters
who were not given ballots for the primary election, but only for the
General Election. There are counties that are split between the Fourth
District and a different district, either the Seventh or the Third, and
we know of at least one voter who was given a ballot for the wrong
Congressional District. We know of a voter who was told that he had
already voted, when he had not, which leads to the inference that other
voters were told the same thing and did not take the time to assert
their rights.
We
have consulted with knowledgeable people, and I have consulted with my
family and, most importantly I have prayed for guidance. In the end,
the decision of whether or not to file a contest was mine and mine
alone.
I
have decided to refrain from contesting this election. I am not willing
to put the State Republican Primary Board, the Secretary of State’s
Office and Division of Elections, the County Election Commissions, the
campaign staff, my volunteers, my family and the public through
additional weeks of litigation, with uncertainty as to who the nominee
will be.
State
law provides that ballots must be ready to send out to military,
overseas and other absentee voters 45 days before the November election,
and I am not willing to put them in a difficult position. A contest
would not be the right thing for the Republican Party and the
conservative cause in Tennessee. Contests of primary elections are
extremely compressed. The Fourth District is geographically
widespread. Under state law, if there is a recount, all votes in every
county must be recounted, even in counties where we are confident that
the counts were accurate. A recount does not uncover votes that were
illegal or that were illegally kept from being cast. These factors
weigh against a contest.
I
assure the public that the Secretary of State’s office, and the
Division of Elections in that office, have been responsive, fair and
objective and have done their job in an exemplary way. That office is
in the best of hands. Chairman Chris Devaney, the staff and the counsel
for the Tennessee Republican Primary Board went into action immediately
after Election Night to prepare for a contest, and I thank them. I am
forever grateful to my family, staff, volunteers, contributors, and the
voters who placed their faith in me and have encouraged me throughout
the campaign and in this decision-making period. I also want to comment
that the press has reported fairly, neutrally and calmly, and I
sincerely appreciate their demeanor.
I
have called Rep. DesJarlais to inform him of my decision to concede and
congratulated him. One reason why I am at peace about my decision is
that I am devoted to my service as the Senator from the Fourteenth
Senatorial District of Tennessee. Serving the people of the Fourteenth
District and helping to make Tennessee a better place to live, work, do
business and go to school is a high honor. I will continue to serve in
the Senate with dedication, energy and integrity. Much is at stake for
our country and our state; I look forward to helping us meet the
challenges ahead.
God bless and Thank you,
Jim Tracy
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