(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Democrat Eileen O'Neill Burke has won the party's nomination for Cook County State's Attorney, the Associated Press reported Friday.
Burke and her Democratic opponent, law professor and attorney Clayton Harris III, were neck and neck for several days as city and county election officials tabulated mail-in ballots for the March 19 primary. Burke and Harris were seeking the top prosecutor job being vacated by incumbent Kimberly Foxx, who did not seek re-election.
O'Neill Burke had a mere 1,556-vote margin as of Friday, CBS Chicago reports -- a far cry from the 10,000-vote buffer she enjoyed Tuesday as initial votes were counted.
“It was worth the wait. I am so honored to be the Democratic nominee for Cook County State’s Attorney,” O’Neill Burke said in a statement posted online. “Whether you voted for me or not, I promise to work tirelessly as your State’s Attorney.”
Harris conceded in a prepared statement that said, in part, “I said throughout this campaign that I would continue to push forward on the urgent work of criminal justice reform. That remains my commitment."
O'Neill Burke, a former assistant prosecutor and state appellate justice, will square off against former Chicago alderman Bob Fioretti, the Republican candidate, and Libertarian Andrew Charles Kopinski in the November general election.