Rick Larsen victory in the 2nd

With more than 263,000 votes counted in the 2nd Congressional District, Representative Rick Larsen hangs on to his lead over John Koster, and declares victory

With more ballots counted today, Larsen has 3,677 more votes than Koster. Most of the votes counted today went in Koster’s favor. Looking at the percentages, the two are separated by 1.4% of the votes.

Larsen posted this statement on his website tonight:

The days since the election have been an exciting time for our local democratic process. This election proves that every vote counts. And I want to thank every person who took the time to participate and cast a ballot in this race.

I have always said that representing the 2nd District isn’t my job, it is my privilege. And I am humbled and thankful to have the privilege to continue to serve.

I want to thank everyone for your words of encouragement and your prayers during the last 6 days. Tiia, Robert, Per and I very much appreciate the outpouring of grace people have shown.

I want to thank the hundreds of volunteers, too numerous to mention, but without whom the campaign could not have done what it did. You know who you are and I know the job you did. Thank you.

I want to thank my campaign staff for hanging in there, executing a plan that withstood the wave, and making that plan a success.

Now is the time to move forward. The campaign is behind us and we need to move forward on governing in the best interests of the people of this area.

The political landscape has changed and the new majority now has an equal responsibility to govern. One lesson of the Democratic party’s loss is that Americans want bipartisanship. The American people want the parties to work together.

I have a history of bipartisanship having worked to pass pipeline safety legislation in the minority and the Wild Sky wilderness bill while in the majority and signed into law by then-President George Bush. I look forward to finding similar opportunities next year.

There is much upon which we need to move forward.

I believe this campaign was about the economy in our area. The recent jobs report shows the actions we took over the last two years are beginning to take hold. Not only did October show job growth of 150,000 new jobs, previous months’ jobs reports have been revised upward. We need to keep that momentum going.

In the Pacific Northwest, we need economic solutions for us. My focus will continue to be on landing the Air Force tanker to create jobs here, not somewhere else; building clean energy jobs; supporting small and medium size manufacturers; and increasing access to credit for small businesses.

In closing let me say again that serving in Congress is not my job, it is my privilege to serve given by the people to whom it belongs. I thank you for the privilege of serving two more years.