Two days after the election and with an additional 15,834 votes counted, Republican Paul Chabot has conceded to his Democratic rival Pete Aguilar in the race for the 31st Congressional District.

“I wish Pete Aguilar the best because much is at stake and we as Americans must come together now more than ever,” Chabot wrote in a statement emailed out to supporters and the media Thursday, shortly after 5 p.m. “Like I have said from day one, we must lead by example and lead through the lens of being a parent. As a proud father to four young children, we must all work together so that this Nation becomes stronger, safer and more prosperous, for all.”

Naval reserve veteran Chabot thanked his volunteers and staff:

“As a team, we almost showed the world that you can win a race with little money but lots of heart,” he wrote. “To face the odds we did, outspent some 30 to 1, in the most targeted seat in America, is a badge of honor that I hope you each wear proudly because I honestly believe that what we accomplished has shaken the political world to pay attention to a rag-tag group ready to take it all on.”

According to the Federal Election Commission, as of Oct. 15, Aguilar had raised $1.9 million and spent $1.8 million. In contrast, Chabot raised only $428,574 and spent $351,784.

Chabot vowed that voters haven’t seen the last of him — “we are just getting started, because America is in crisis” — and asked supporters to pray for Aguilar as he represents the district in Congress.

Aguilar replaces Rep. Gary Miller, R-Rancho Cucamonga, who announced in February that he would not seek re-election.

The race between Aguilar and Chabot was tight, with each man getting a moment Tuesday when they were the front-runner, first Chabot, when the count was only of mailed-in ballots. Aguilar’s turn came once ballots from those who voted on Election Day began to be counted.

They finished Election Night with less than 2,000 votes and a little more than 2 percent separating them: Aguilar with 51.04 percent of the vote (40,123 votes) and Chabot with 48.96 percent (38,488 votes).

On Thursday, the San Bernardino County Registrar of Voters released updated totals, including more vote-by-mail, damaged and provisional ballots.

But things changed little for the two candidates: Aguilar extended his lead only by a fraction of a percent, with 51.26 percent of the vote (46,699 votes) over Chabot’s 48.74 percent (44,408 votes), a difference of 2,291 votes.

A few minutes after 4 p.m., Chabot called Aguilar to concede.

“The people of San Bernardino County have placed their trust in me and their vote behind our middle class agenda, and it is an honor to be able to fight for them in Congress,” Aguilar said in a written statement released Thursday evening. “I just spoke with Dr. Chabot, and he graciously conceded. I look forward to being able to find ways to work with him going forward to strengthen the Inland Empire. Our fight for education and good paying jobs continues, and I will go to Washington and deliver on your behalf.”

There are still more ballots yet to be counted in San Bernardino County: The registrar’s office plans to release the results of an additional 9,336 mailed-in and damaged ballots on Friday at 4 p.m. Beyond that, there are an additional 16,012 provisional, mailed-in and damaged ballots to count, for a total of 25,348 yet to be counted.