Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke, who lost his Senate bid to incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, offered an impassioned concession speech late Tuesday, pledging to work with his former opponent, emphatically praising his supporters, and expressing a desire to help unite the country.
“We’re not about being against anybody,” O’Rourke told a screaming crowd in El Paso, Texas, where his campaign headquarters was located. “We're not going to define ourselves by who or what we're against, or what we’re afraid of.”
“We are a great people. Ambitious. Defined by our aspirations,” he said. “Every single one of us, Republican, Democrats, independents, from the biggest of cities, to the smallest of towns, the people of Texas want to do and will do the great work of this country.”
O’Rourke, a 45-year-old congressman who represents an El Paso-area district, said he’d called Cruz to congratulate him on his win “and to wish him well going forward.”
“At this time of division, the country’s been as polarized as I can member it in my life,” he said. “If there's anything we can do to help him in his position of public trust… in any way that brings us back together, around the big things we want to achieve.”
O’Rourke, his hoarse voice beginning to crack, then turned his attention to his adoring crowd.
“I’m so f------ proud of you guys,” he said, prompting loud cheers.