North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory pauses while making comments concerning House Bill 2 during a conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 4, 2016. AP Photo/Gerry Broome North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory announced Monday he was conceding the 2016 election to Democrat Roy Cooper, putting an end to America's longest and most contentious gubernatorial race nearly a full month after Election Day.

"Despite continued questions that should be answered regarding the voting process, I personally believe the majority of our citizens have spoken, and we should now do everything we can to support the 75th governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper," McCrory said in a video released on YouTube.

"The McCrory administration team will assist in every way to help the new administration make a smooth transition," he added.

Cooper, who named his transition team two weeks ago as the election tilted further in his favor, thanked McCrory in a statement that acknowledged the "divisive" election in which the two competed.

"I want to thank Gov. McCrory and our First Lady Ann McCrory for their service to our state," Cooper said. "I’m proud to have received the support from so many who believe that we can come together to make a North Carolina that works for everyone."

"While this was a divisive election season, I know still that there is more that unites us than divides us."

The contest between McCrory and Cooper was the closest of any governor's race in the country and is the last to be settled. McCrory trailed Cooper by about 4,500 votes on election night, a margin that grew to more than 10,000 in the following weeks as provisional and absentee ballots were tallied.

But McCrory, a Republican, refused to concede initially, lodging complaints of voter fraud in counties across the state. Several of the complaints were thrown out due to a lack of evidence.

The incumbent's team did succeed in its quest for a recount in Durham County, the Democratic hotbed that swung the election to Cooper shortly before midnight on Election Day. Republicans were suspicious of the sudden addition of 90,000 early votes to the final count. But partial results of the recount showed virtually 100% accuracy in the original tabulation.

Democrats, in turn, accused Republicans of sowing doubt in the election results in a possible effort to justify more restrictive voting laws in the future. Some also feared Republicans would attempt to pass the election to the GOP-dominated state legislature, who under North Carolina law can decide the result of a "contested election."

McCrory was elected governor of North Carolina in 2012 after serving as mayor of Charlotte for 14 years. His moderate platform earned him bipartisan support at first, but he alienated many of his supporters with hardline conservative positions.

As governor, he championed a voter ID law in an ostensible attempt to crack down on voter fraud. But a federal court struck down the law in July, claiming it was passed with "discriminatory intent" and targeted black voters "with almost surgical precision."

McCrory also faced criticism for his support of House Bill 2, a law critics fear will lead to anti-LGBT discrimination. The governor signed the bill into law in March, and persistently defended it throughout the year as businesses withdrew expansions from the state, costing North Carolina hundreds of millions of dollars. The law is being challenged in federal court.