Dan Hynes To Make 'Major Announcement'

Dan Hynes, who vowed to "keep fighting" as the Illinois Primary results trickled in Tuesday night, will make a "major announcement" Thursday morning--with many expecting the comptroller to concede the primary election to Gov. Pat Quinn.

Governor Quinn, who has been about 8,000 votes ahead of Hynes since early Wednesday, has already received a congratulatory phone call from President Obama and a pat on the back from the Democratic Governors Association. Even as the race remained incredibly close late Tuesday, Quinn announced to supporters "The time for fighting is over," Quinn told supporters. "The people have won and we have won this election."

Hynes, however, was hoping for a last-minute surge of votes, but the gap has only increased since Tuesday night.

"It is important for Illinois to get this right," Hynes told supporters. "Hang in there."

Chicago Sun-Times columnist Michael Sneed reports that Obama also gave Hynes a call Wednesday after congratulating Quinn:

"It was a warm conversation between two friends," a Hynes spokesman told Sneed.

The Chicago Tribune reports the three-term state comptroller will speak at 10 a.m. at his downtown campaign headquarters, 57 W. Grand Ave.

Meanwhile, Republicans in the state are fearing a recount. With a little more than 400 votes separating state Sen. Billy Brady of Bloomington and Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale, the final results remain to be seen. Dillard issued a statement Wednesday noting there were hundreds of provisional and absentee ballots that had to be counted.