Sen. Bob Casey has conceded the Pennsylvania Senate race to Dave McCormick.

Cased said in a statement Thursday that he had called to congratulate McCormick after the first results from a recount had been completed.

“This race was one of the closest in our Commonwealth’s history, decided by less than a quarter of a point,” he said. “I am grateful to the thousands of people who worked to make sure every eligible vote cast could be counted, including election officials in all 67 counties.”

The Associated Press had already called the race for McCormick but the results triggered an automatic recount under Pennsylvania law because the margin was within 0.5%.

McCormick’s win helped propel the Republicans to a 53-47 majority in the incoming Senate.