Concession Speech - Nov. 6, 2018

Thank you everyone. Thank you for coming out and supporting us.

Folks, it's been a long tough, race. We gave it our all, and I am so grateful for all the commitment that you all showed and all the hard work. Unfortunately, we got so close and the voters decided to remain on the current path. I respect their decision.

Just a while ago I called Congressman Barr and congratulated him on his victory. I know that we all hope that he returns to Washington with a renewed sense of purpose to be a congressman for all the voters, even those even those who didn't vote for him.

I'm so proud of the campaign we ran. We did our very best to focus on the substance and talk about the needs of Kentucky and the needs of our nation right now. Some may criticize our choice not to get in the mud and return fire with fire. Some may criticize the choice not to launch our own attack ads.

But more than ever, folks, we as a nation have to bridge the partisan divides that seem to be widening in our country. We must demand a more civil tone and tenor in our politics. We deserve better than a win-at-all-costs mentality.

I was unwilling and will remain unwilling to be part of the problem. I was unwilling to be part of the problem just to get the office. The incivility, the lies, the fake news – it all needs to stop. This isn't who we are as a country.

Now we have to deal, of course, with lunatics who mail pipe bombs and leaders who would rather blame the media or the other side rather than acknowledging what's happening. And it won't stop until we have leaders and candidates who refuse to play to our fears and divide us. It won't stop. We have to come to grips with the overheated rhetoric that has dominated our political conversation and badly divides us as a nation.

That's why losing this election cannot slow us down. It's why we all need to keep fighting for a better future, a more civil dialogue. We all must remain engaged and not allow setbacks to be the reason that we give up. Do not give up on our country. Do not.

We cannot surrender to this climate. We must continue to speak out and remain engaged in our politics, to support good candidates for public office and to always vote.

I have no idea what lies ahead, but I promise that I will remain an active voice here in Kentucky and I hope you do the same.

There's a lot of thank yous that I have here tonight, and I'd like to thank some of these folks.

Thank you for the hundreds and thousands of people who donated to this campaign. Ninety percent of the donations to this campaign were $50 or less – 90 percent. That's incredible.

Thank you to the hundreds and thousands of people who were actively a part of this campaign. Thank you for your work, thank you for your time, for your heart, for your energy, for your patriotism, for your inspiration and for your belief in me. But most importantly, thank you for your belief in the real soul of our country and for never giving up.

To my campaign manager, Mark Nickolas– there you are – you and I both know we needed to try to make a difference for our country and we did, Mark, we did. We made a difference by the way we ran this campaign and you know this.

To Mark Putnam, Joe Hanson, Fred Yang, Lori LaFave, Sannie Overly and to my entire team of young American patriots, yeah, Kentuckians – thank you for putting your heart and soul into this campaign and working tirelessly to make it happen.

Thank you to my family. My mother, my sister Jane, my brother Matt, and my children – your love and support has always allowed me to fly and to follow my dreams, and I love you.

And thank you to the most amazing partner in my life, my husband Erik, whose support has been unwavering and who absolutely, absolutely has sacrificed the most in this campaign. I love you, honey.

Folks, we can lick our wounds tonight, but just tonight. Let's shake it off in the morning, get back on the horse and resume our work for a more perfect union. Our country depends on it.

Thank you all for everything. I will never forget what you all did for this first-time candidate. Thank you, everybody.