Deely Concedes in 131st State House Race

Democrat Kevin Deely has decided not to seek a recount in the 131st state House race and has conceded the race to incumbent Republican Justin Simmons, according to a post Monday afternoon on his Facebook page.

Deely said he would return the money raised for the recount effort.

"It's been an amazing journey!" Deely wrote. "After careful consideration, I've decided to forego a recount and return the contributions raised for that effort. The cost and time associated with it, as well as the increased vote margin, makes a recount unlikely to change the outcome. I have just called Representative Simmons to congratulate him and wish him well."

Lehigh County's vote count showed Simmons edged out Kevin Deely by 16 votes in Lehigh County, and the Simmons camp had said the Northampton County vote count put Simmons ahead by another 432 votes.

Deely said in his post that he was proud of his effort.

"We knocked on nearly 30,000 doors and spoke with thousands of voters. We faced an incumbent who spent twice what we did, in a district which hasn't elected a Democrat in twenty years - and we came within literally a handful votes in Lehigh County. Truly amazing!"