DEVELOPING: Davis Concedes Primary to Roe

By Josh Smith
Anchor / WJHL
Published: August 15, 2008

UPDATE: (1:51 p.m): News Channel 11 will bring you continuous coverage of David Davis’ decision to not contest the results of the August 7 primary in Tennessee’s First Congressional District and we’ll also have reaction from Johnson City Mayor Dr. Phil Roe on these developments. Expect team coverage tonight beginning at 5.

Update at 12:36 p.m.:
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Here’s a statement from the Tennessee Republican Party:

NASHVILLE –Tennessee Republican Party officials today praised U.S. Rep. David Davis’ decision not to contest the results of the August 7 primary in Tennessee’s First Congressional District.
“Congressman Davis’s decision to let the voters of the First District, rather than a parade of lawyers, courts and committees, have the final say on who they wish to represent them in Congress represents the best traditions of American democracy,“ said Robin Smith, Chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party.
“State law permits voters to declare at the polling place which party’s primary they wish to participate in, a system that allows Tennesseans to vote for the man or woman they believe is best for the job and, unless an election result has been compromised by actual voter fraud such as false identity or votes cast by the dead, we believe the will of the voters as expressed at the ballot box on election day should be respected,“ Smith said. “David Davis has served his community honorably and with distinction first as a state legislator, then as a member of Congress, and now by his decision to let the people’s vote stand without challenge.“

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UPDATE at 10:52 a.m.:
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Phil Roe told News Channel 11 that David Davis called him to concede defeat in the 1st district Republican primary.  “He told me he conceded, that I had the votes needed to win, and that he’d done this for constitutional reasons,“ Roe said.

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First story on TriCities.Com:
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David Davis has conceded defeat in the 1st district Republican Primary to Phil Roe, News Channel 11 has confirmed.

Davis made a statement to WJHL-TV in the office of his business in downtown Johnson City at 10:35 a.m..

Just yesterday, Davis told News Channel 11 he was moving ahead with an investigation of what he considered to be “voter irregularities.“

Look for updates here on TriCities.Com and a live report on News Channel 11 at noon.