Thank You for allowing me to serve as Congressman

Over the two decades in which I've had the honor of representing Texans in the legislature and in congress -- I've managed to win some very tough races and survive some huge partisan waves.

Last night, we ran into a wave that we were unable to overcome.

It came down to the wire and though we came up short -- we put up one heck of a fight and I want each and every one of you to know how much all you've done means to me.

Over the course of this campaign, I received so much support and could not be more grateful to my friends, volunteers, contributors and staff.

As a parent, there are certain core values I want my son to learn. One of them is honesty. Another is good manners. I believe in being gracious at all times -- gracious in victory; gracious in defeat. Tonight, I embrace the will of the voters in this election as I have the will of the voters in each election I have been privileged to win.

I want to congratulate Will Hurd on winning this hard fought race. While the airwaves were flooded with millions of dollars in attack ads, Will and I managed to keep things relatively positive and I hope he continues that positivity as he heads to Congress.

One thing Will and I agreed on was that Congress has simply not been doing its job. Texans deserve far better than what Congress has been giving them and I intend to provide Will any and all help I possibly can to help him work to correct that problem as he prepares to take office.

As for me -- while I'm of course disappointed in the final outcome, I am also very much looking forward to now being able to spend more time as a better husband and father.

Again, thank you so much and I promise to stay in touch.

- Pete Gallago