At the festive Kowloon Restaurant off Route 1 in Saugus, Republican veteran Richard Tisei was the soul of graciousness last night when he conceded defeat to political novice Seth Moulton, the Democrat who won election to Congress with 55 percent of the vote in the 6th Congressional District North of Boston.
Tisei, 52, struck a conciliatory tone in his concession speech, praising his 36-year-old opponent generously.
“I called Seth Moulton a little while ago and wished him well," Tisei said. "Seth — I think most people know and watched us interact — we both like each other — and I’m very proud of the fact of the race that we ran, just the whole tone and tenor of this race. A lot of people around the country looked to this congressional district as an example of how a race should go."
“Mai tais are on the house," Tisei told the crowd. "Please stay and have a good time."
But off the stage, Tisei did have some criticism.
"We were outspent, obviously, on TV, and when you see a negative ad you want to respond to it, but you don’t always have the resources,” he said.
Tisei came close to winning the 6th District seat from long-time incumbent John Tierney just two years ago. He said it would benefit the state to have a Republican at the national level.
“There are a lot of issues coming up and I still believe that it is important for somebody in the delegation to provide some balance and a seat at the table," he said. "Not to have that type of influence hurts us.”
When it came to his own future in politics, Tisei — who served 26 years in the state legislature — was cagey.
"Who knows what’s in the future, but right now that’s the last thing on my mind, trust me."
Tisei said for now all he wants to do is take a few days off, then concentrate on the real-estate business he owns with his husband.
