FINAL HOUSE TALLY: REPUBLICANS, 234; DEMOCRATS, 201

[Geee]

Human Events:

When Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.) conceded defeat late Friday to Democratic opponent and physician Raul Ruiz, it brought the number of still-undecided races for the U.S. House of Representatives to six.

Should the remaining six go in the direction they are now headed, then the next U.S. House will consist of 234 Republicans and 201 Democrats. Republicans will experience a net loss of eight from the House majority captured in the 2010 elections that gave the GOP 87 freshmen and their largest number of House Members (242) since 1938.

Historically, when one candidate for the House leads an opponent by 500 votes or more on election eve, that candidate usually emerges on top when the provisional and absentee ballots are counted. There have been some modern exceptions. In 1996, for example, the late Rep. Jack Metcalf (R-Wash.) was projected the loser by several thousand votes by numerous news outlets. But a subsequent count of absentee and provisional ballots, which numbered in the tens of thousands in Washington State’s 2nd District, put Metcalf on top and he was re-elected.