Massachusetts Sees One Of Closest Gubernatorial Races In Recent State History

After one of the closest gubernatorial races in recent state history, Democrat Martha Coakley officially conceded Wednesday. Republican Charlie Baker will be the next governor of Massachusetts.

The suspense lasted into the wee hours of Wednesday morning, and when it was over Baker had beaten Coakley by less than 2 percent — or about 40,000 votes.

"I would not change a single thing," said Martha Coakley, addressing her supporters Wednesday. "I was so honored to do this race. I've learned so much. I learned so much — a lot — about myself and about Massachusetts. I think we did everything we could have done. We left nothing on the table. And, look, there's only one winner."

"I think, in the end, the voters responded to our message about focusing on the economy and focusing on educational excellence and focusing on that bipartisanship and balance on Beacon Hill," Baker said, speaking to his backers an hour after Coakley conceded.

Baker also said his first order of business is to assemble the team to serve in his administration.

WBUR's Sacha Pfeiffer and Anthony Brooks talk with a pair of political analysts about Election Day results.

Susan Tracy, Democratic strategist and president of The Strategy Group.

Rob Gray, Republican analyst and consultant. He's also president of Gray Media. He tweets @GrayMediaGroup.

WBUR: Interactive Map: Town-By-Town Results For 13 Key Mass. Races