King concedes Illinois 17th Congressional District race to Sorensen

MOLINE, Ill. (KWQC) - Esther Joy King conceded the 17th Congressional District race to Eric Sorensen Wednesday morning.

Wednesday morning Joy King called Sorensen to concede, according to a media release Sorensen posted on Facebook.

The race has not been officially called as of Wednesday morning, there is 88% of the vote was reported. Sorensen has 114,210 votes at 52% of the vote and Joy King has 106,693 votes at 48% of the vote.

“I thank her for running, and while we disagreed on the issues, we both have a passion for service,” Sorensen said.

It has truly been the honor of my lifetime to run to serve the people of this district. I have gotten to know so many wonderful people who have helped me along the way. Unfortunately, this is not the outcome we wanted. When we started this journey four years ago, my goal was to bring better representation to this area and I think we’ve done that--little-by-little, bringing awareness to Northwestern and Central Illinois, focusing on the issues people care about, and making this seat competitive again because I believe accountability is critical. I want to thank all of my supporters, my team, and my family for the hard work they put in. I wish Eric the best of luck and I hope he will put the needs of this district over his personal ideology in Congress because the people deserve it.

“I am honored to have been elected to serve as the next Congressman for Illinois’ 17th Congressional District. I’ve worked to serve the people of Central & NW Illinois for 22 years, earning their trust by telling them the truth and helping them make the right decisions for their lives. In Congress, I will bring that same honesty to representing them and commitment to fighting for lower cost, reproductive rights, and good-paying, sustainable jobs right here at home. Our communities are stronger when we work together, neighbor by neighbor - I look forward to advocating on behalf of the people of Central & NW Illinois in Congress and making sure that they have a seat at the table. And I look forward to continuing to be a good neighbor.”