Republican Scott Burns, who lost the attorney general's race to Democrat Jan Graham by just over 6,000 votes, said he will not seek a recount.
The statewide race was considered too close to call until about 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. Burns and Graham traded the lead back and forth throughout the night."I think she won fair and square, and I have no intention of asking for a recount," Burns said Wednesday. He said he called Graham to concede the race about 10 a.m.
"I congratulated her on the victory, and I said I thought she ran a great race," Burns said, adding that he offered the new attorney general his support.
Burns, who has two years remaining in his four-year term as Iron County attorney, said he lost because some of the other Republicans running statewide didn't do as well as expected against independent challengers.
Voters in the presidential and gubernatorial races strayed from a straight party ticket to vote for Ross Perot and Merrill Cook, who both finished second in their races.
"I don't think any of the Republicans ran strong enough that I could gain the benefit of any coattails," he said. "I don't think I got the benefit of good Republicans punching the `R'."
Burns said he did not believe running against a woman cost him votes. Graham is the first woman elected to statewide office in Utah. "Gender was not the issue."