Democratic incumbent Pat Quinn has conceded to Republican businessman Bruce Rauner in the Illinois governor's race.
With 99% of precincts reporting, Rauner had a nearly 5 percentage point lead over Quinn. Rauner declared victory on election night, but Quinn said he'd wait for all votes to be counted. Quinn's campaigned noted outstanding ballots in Chicago and suburban Cook County.
On Wednesday afternoon, Quinn said it was clear his campaign didn't have the votes to overcome Rauner's lead.
He had sought a second full term. He was locked into one of the nation's most competitive and expensive governor's races with the Winnetka venture capitalist.
Quinn first became Illinois governor in 2009 in the wake of ex-Governor Rod Blagojevich's corruption scandal. He narrowly won in 2010 over Republican state Senator Bill Brady.