Has Bob Casey lost the Senate race to Dave McCormick? Yes.

Three-term U.S. Sen. Bob Casey on Thursday conceded defeat to Republican businessman Dave McCormick in their closely watched Pennsylvania Senate race.

The admission came more than two weeks after the election and amid a costly taxpayer-funded recount. In a statement, Casey said the race – which he lost by about a quarter of a percentage point – was among the closest in Commonwealth history.

“As the first ballot count ends, Pennsylvanians can move forward knowing their voices were heard, whether their vote was the first or last to be counted,” said Casey, who called McCormick to congratulate him Thursday night.

Casey trailed his Republican rival on election night, and the Associated Press called the contest in McCormick’s favor a few days later. But he and other Democrats were not ready to concede the loss of Pennsylvania’s narrowly divided U.S. Senate seat, insisting the uncounted ballots could still propel the 18-year incumbent to victory.

McCormick, who lost a Senate primary to celebrity surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz two years ago, suggested he empathized with his Democratic rival and understood the election outcome might take time to absorb. The tone of his campaign became more difficult as the days passed and Casey still did not concede his loss.

Although McCormick’s team argued that it was mathematically impossible for Casey to win based on the remaining ballots, Democrats pointed to several GOP legal filings regarding the counting process as evidence that the Republican recognized that his apparent victory was slim.

McCormick sued prevent Bucks County, Pennsylvania, from counting undated or undated mail-in ballotsand Republicans asked the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to instruct all counties to reject these votes. The Republican campaign also filed legal challenges to the provisional vote count in the Democratic stronghold of Philadelphia.

The recount also delayed resolving the race.

Because the two men’s vote share was separated by less than 0.5%, Pennsylvania law required a statewide recount, although Casey could have waived it as the defeated candidate. Instead, he exercised his right to the second number, which was estimated to cost more than $1 million in taxpayer funds.

For his part, McCormick continued as a senator-elect, traveling to Washington, DC for his Senate orientation and discussing his plans to represent the community in Congress.

Bethany Rodgers is an investigative journalist for the USA TODAY Network’s Pennsylvania Capital Bureau.