GOP congressional candidate Derek Myers (OH) accidentally announced a concession to the Ohio race before polls closed.
Several news outlets received the concession email before Myers clarified the content was sent erroneously.
“Attention Press: My campaign comms team has sent out an email in error as we prepare for both possible outcomes tonight,” Myers wrote on X. “The polls remain open until 7:30 p.m. Please disregard the email. Thank you.”
He explained that two emails were prepared for the evening, but one was sent in error.
“Two emails were prepared for this evening: one declaring a victory and one conceding the race,” he said. “The concession email was sent in error as it was being loaded into the media distribution portal, as a draft, in the event of a loss. Accidentally, the ‘send now’ button was clicked instead of ‘draft.'”
“The winning email was also drafted, but was not sent in error, thankfully. Anyone who works in communications knows it’s not uncommon to have speeches and releases prepared in the event of each outcome, especially on such an [important] night. It’s simply good strategy.”
“Whatever the results return this evening, I’ll be thankful for this journey,” he continued. “And yes, the media will be getting a release sometime after the results roll in, declaring a victory or concession. Thank you.”
Myers is one of 11 GOP candidates in the race for Representative Brad Wenstrup’s district.
