NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Challenger Jim Tracy is conceding his 38-vote loss to scandal-plagued U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais (day-zhar-LAY') in the Republican primary for Tennessee's 4th Congressional District.
Tracy announced his concession in a news release this morning. He had faced a Tuesday deadline to decide whether to challenge the results to the state Republican Party's executive committee.
DesJarlais, a Jasper physician, prevailed despite a series of personal scandals that included affairs with patients, urging a mistress to seek an abortion and once holding a gun in his mouth for hours outside his ex-wife's room.
DesJarlais, who faced a heavy fundraising disadvantage during the campaign, dismissed attention to his past scandals as mudslinging about "old news," instead stressing his tea party credentials and hard-line opposition to President Barack Obama's policies.