Ohio GOP candidate accidentally concedes race: ‘Please disregard’

The campaign for Derek Myers, a Republican candidate competing in Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District race, committed a series of embarrassing mistakes, including accidentally sending out a concession email, hours before the close of Tuesday’s primary.

An email from Myers’ campaign office that was sent to media outlets on Tuesday at around 3 p.m. ET lamented that "tonight did not go as we had hoped."

Myers said "from a private watch party in Chillicothe" that he was looking forward to uniting behind the "Congressman-Elect" to get President Trump reelected to the White House by defeating President Biden. Polls in Ohio close at 7:30 p.m. ET.

"Listen, I’m in my thirties and as I’ve told everyone on this campaign trial, ‘if I don’t win this race, that’s okay!’ I’ve got thirty-or-fifty more years left – and that’s if I live a good live," he said in the email. "I’m looking forward to staying in the arena of Ohio politics and working with all Republicans to make Ohio great again!"

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Derek Myers is running for Ohio's 2nd Congressional District seat. His team accidentally sent out an email conceding the race hours before the polls even closed. (Facebook/Derek Myers)

Less than 10 minutes later, Myers’ campaign office sent out a follow-up email, admitting that the previous one had been sent "in error, due to a technical issue."

"Please disregard the email. Thank you," the second email reads.

Roughly 30 minutes later, Myers sent out yet another email explaining in more detail what happened.

The email was sent with the self-effacing headline: "So you wanna know what happened, eh?"

Myers explained that his campaign team had prepared two emails for the evening, with "one declaring victory and one conceding the race."

"The concession email was sent in error as it was being loaded into the media distribution portal, as a draft, in the event of a loss," Myers said, adding that someone accidentally hit the "send now" button instead of "draft."

But that was not all. He went on to explain that the winning email was also drafted, a common practice for communications teams, so they can be prepared "especially on such an impotent night."

Not surprisingly, his campaign clarified to Fox News Digital that he meant to say "important."

A Republican candidate competing in Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District saw his campaign commit a series of embarrassing mistakes on Tuesday: sending an email conceding the race before it was even over, then accidentally swapping the word "impotent" for "important" in a follow-up email. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

"It's simply good strategy. Whatever the results return this evening, I’ll be thankful for this journey. And yes, the media will be getting a release sometime after the results roll in, declaring a victory or concession. Thank you," Myers concluded.

On X, formerly Twitter, Myers later appeared to poke fun at the apparent typo.

"If this whole politics thing doesn't work out, maybe I can be hired to be a spokesman like Bob Dole?" Myers tweeted, referring to the former U.S. senator from Kansas and presidential candidate. The tweet included a 1998 commercial for Viagra, featuring Dole.

Myers clarified that he had "no issue with that department… yet" and included the hashtags #InMyThirties, #Impotent, #Spellcheck and #AlwaysSpellCheck.

Myers "OFFICIALLY" conceded just before 9 p.m. Thursday. 

"In elections there is inevitably a winner and those who go on to fight another day. I don't view this outcome as a defeat; rather, it's an enriching experience for which I am genuinely grateful," he tweeted.  

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Myers is competing in a crowded 11-person GOP primary for Ohio’s 2nd Congressional district following Rep. Brad Wenstrup’s decision to retire.

The winner of the GOP primary is heavily favored to win the general election in November.