Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo concedes to Gabe Evans, flipping Colorado's 8th Congressional District

Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo, who represents Colorado's 8th Congressional District, conceded her race to Republican challenger Gabe Evans on Sunday.

The congresswoman's campaign issued a statement Sunday afternoon thanking supporters, staff and family, saying that she would finish her term.

"It's been the honor of a lifetime to serve the people of Colorado's 8th district. I came to Congress to get things done, and have spent the last two years working to find common ground and bipartisan solutions to the most pressing issues facing our community," she said in her statement. "I would like to thank my family, staff, volunteers, and supporters who believed in this campaign and the vision we set out to achieve. Together, we built a diverse, people-powered campaign that brought together a coalition of Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters. While this isn't the outcome we had hoped for, the work is not over. I look forward to returning to Washington to finish out this term and will continue to be an independent voice for the people of this district."

Evans also thanked supporters, as well as God, his family and campaign staff, in a statement.

"I am incredibly humbled to be chosen as the next Congressman for Colorado's 8th. It is an honor to be entrusted with the job of representing you and your families, and I am ready to fight back for a better direction for all Coloradans," Evans said. "Thank you to my amazing wife and family for their incredible support and love over the past year, and thank you to our campaign's amazing staff and volunteers for their long hours and dedication to flipping this seat."

"Thank you also to Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo for your service and gracious concession. I look forward to working with her and her team to transition this office over the next few months," he continued. "Most importantly, I give thanks to God. My faith in Him has sustained me throughout this 15-month campaign."

Evans said he'd hold a news conference on Monday to say more about the race.

He won his primary in June with 77.5% of the vote. Caraveo is finishing up her first term in the new congressional district, which includes Greeley, Fort Lupton, Thornton and other areas just north of Denver.

Evans is a Colorado state representative and former police officer, while Caraveo is Colorado's first Latina member of Congress.

Around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Caraveo had 159,426 votes to Evans' 162,022.

Adams County Clerk and Recorder Josh Zygielbaum said over 1,000 ballots were still outstanding and that weather impacted the ability of the Clerk and Recorder's Office to collect and count them as quickly as they might have otherwise.

"This election brought in an unprecedented number of ballots, and we've been working hard to process them accurately and efficiently. However, a severe snowstorm led county executive staff to order building closures, prioritizing the safety of our volunteers and staff. With highways and local roads impacted, travel conditions posed serious risks and also slowed or prohibited mail pick-up and delivery," Zygielbaum said. "While this did impact our timeline, the safety of our team and the integrity of every ballot are our top priorities. At present, we still have approximately 1,290 ballots to process which are related to CD8."

The deadline for military and overseas voters' ballots to arrive, as well as for ballot curing, is Wednesday at 11:59 p.m.

"We are committed to processing ballots as quickly as possible and uploading accurate results to the Secretary of State's website as soon as possible," Zygielbaum said.