For more than 150 years, Americans have been waiting for the losing candidate in the presidential election to announce his contact with the winning candidate to congratulate him on winning and to declare his support for the new president, which represents a decisive acknowledgment of the legitimacy of the elections.
The tradition began in 1860, when Senator Stephen Douglas contacted President Abraham Lincoln to congratulate him on his electoral victory.
Douglas said, "The sentiment and partisan loyalty to patriotism must comply. I am with you, Mr. President, and may God bless you."
Douglas’s defeat came two years after he defeated Lincoln in the Senate election over one of two Illinois state seats.
Al-Jazeera Net presents the following two most important speeches of acceptance of defeat in recent decades, the first by the Democratic candidate Al Gore in 2000, and the second by Republican Senator John McCain in 2008:
Democratic candidate Al Gore Jr., 2000
The Supreme Court played a key role in resolving the dispute over the 2000 election result between Democratic candidate Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush Jr.
The elections ended on the night of November 7 and there was no clear winner, then the media reported contradictory numbers, and at first they expected Al Gore to be the winning candidate in Florida, but later announced that Bush won the majority of the state’s electorate, and Gore called Bush and presented Congratulations to him immediately.
But at 3 am the next morning it became clear that the Florida race was much closer than Al Gore's aides had thought, and that the vote difference was only 600 votes, and Al Gore withdrew his admission of defeat in a second call to Bush.
The two parties resorted to the courts of the state of Florida, and after intense judicial deliberation, the Florida Supreme Court decided to return the hand count in some of the state's counties, and the Bush team objected and referred the matter to the Supreme Court, which overturned the decision of the Florida court on December 12, 2000.
The Supreme Court decision came with a 5 to 4 majority (all nominees from the Democratic candidate voted together to allow the recount, and all Republican nominees refused to recount), and Bush won the 25 Florida votes in the electoral college and won the presidency.
Following the Supreme Court’s intervention, Al Gore admitted defeat on December 13th, and said in a televised address to the American people, “I tell President-elect Bush that what remains of the partisan hatred must now be set aside, and may God bless his leadership of this country. This long and difficult road. Certainly none of us wanted this to happen. Nevertheless, it has come, and now it has ended, and is resolved as it should be resolved, through the generous institutions of our democracy. "
"Now the US Supreme Court has decided, and there is no doubt that I strongly disagree with the court’s decision, but I accept it. I accept the conclusion of this result, which will be ratified, and for the sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy, I submit my concession," Al Gore added.
He ended the speech by saying, "While we adhere to our opposing beliefs and do not concede them, there is a duty higher than the duty we owe to the political party. This is America and we put the country before the party. We will stand together behind our new president."
McCain pledged during his speech to support President Obama (Anatolia)
The late Republican Senator John McCain, 2008
The Arizona senator acknowledged the importance of Democratic candidate Barack Obama's victory, a victory that made him the first black African American to reach the White House.
"These are difficult times for our country, and I pledge to him tonight that I will do everything I can to help him lead us through the many challenges we face," McCain said.
McCain added, "I was not happy with the results of the 2008 elections. But I should have accepted them. Acceptance is not just polite and decent behavior, but an act necessary to respect the will of the American people, an act that is one of the first responsibilities of every American leader."
McCain objected during his speech to the cries of protest launched by his supporters who did not like his concession and his announcement of the loss of the elections, and demanded them calm and respect the desire of the majority of the American people.
"My friends, we have come to the end of a long journey. The American people have spoken and expressed their desires," McCain said. "I had the honor to call Senator Barack Obama minutes ago to congratulate him on his election as the next president of the country we both love."
McCain cried out with a phrase referring to the Obama family, and said, "Senator Obama has achieved something great for himself and his country. I salute him for that, and offer my sincere sympathy that his beloved grandmother did not live to see this day, despite our belief that she is at ease in the presence of her Creator and very, very proud of the man." The good one that I helped raise. "
McCain concluded the speech by saying, "I urge all Americans who have supported me to join me not only in congratulating the new president, but also in presenting our goodwill and hard work to our next president to find ways to meet and prosper in this country."