Joyce Craig conceded defeat in the race for governor as Kelly Ayotte’s margin of victory continued to grow as election results rolled in Tuesday night.

The race was called shortly after 10 p.m., with Ayotte receiving 52% and Craig receiving 46% in what was anticipated to be one of the most competitive gubernatorial elections in the country.

“When I announced this campaign, I said that we were one election away from becoming Massachusetts,” Ayotte told the crowd at her watch party. “Guess what – not on my watch.”

Ayotte pledged to work in a bipartisan manner for all New Hampshire residents and emphasized a commitment to working on housing, mental health and supporting families and teachers.

“I know that our best days are ahead of us for New Hampshire,” Ayotte said.

Craig was poised to lose Manchester, the state’s largest city where she grew up and later became mayor.

“Tonight isn’t the result we wanted but I’m proud of our campaign and the issues that we focused on,” said Craig. “I wanted to strengthen our public schools and uplift our community, and it’s what got me into this race to build more housing, to strengthen our public schools to keep our communities safe and to protect reproductive freedom in New Hampshire.”

Craig’s early lead in the polls began to slip away as more results began to trickle in from smaller communities that lean Republican.

“I love this state, and I love Manchester, and I want to thank all of you again, all of you for working to make sure that we make New Hampshire a stronger place.”

Trust, abortion and Donald Trump defined the race.

For voters like Joi Cozzi, a 50-year-old from Bow, abortion was top of mind. Standing in line at her polling place, Cozzi said she supported candidates who held a pro-life stance, including Ayotte. However, she admitted she had hoped for a stronger anti-abortion stance from Ayotte.

“I was disappointed in Ayotte’s stance but I will vote for her,” Cozzi said. “I wish she was more pro-life. She kind of squirmed there at the end.”

Craig had repeatedly attacked Ayotte – a former U.S. senator and state attorney general – for voting against abortion access in the Senate, while Ayotte maintains that she supports New Hampshire’s current law, in which abortion is legal until the third trimester.

Concord voter Richard Clymer works at BAE Systems, a defense contractor based in Nashua where Ayotte has served as chair of the company’s board of directors. He said he found Ayotte trustworthy, and he’s liked her work there, but abortion also factored into his decision.

“I think she has a balanced view on abortion,” Clymer said. He doesn’t think either side should vilify the other, including on abortion issues. “Compassion needs to be the mainstay.”

Kevin O’Brien, a longtime Nashua law enforcement officer who lives in Windham, said he supported Ayotte’s push to keep New Hampshire on its current path.

“It really is the New Hampshire way that we’re trying to preserve,” he said, and Ayotte has routinely backed law enforcement.

For him, the top issues are taxes and immigration.

“That sanctuary stuff scares the hell out of me,” O’Brien said. Both Ayotte and Craig have said they wouldn’t make New Hampshire into a sanctuary state. “It’s people thinking with their hearts and not their brains.”

On election night, Shaelyn Frost and her husband made the hour-long drive from Durham to Manchester to join the New Hampshire Democrats’ watch party at the Puritan Backroom Conference Center, standing in support of every candidate on the ballot.

At nine weeks pregnant, for Frost, 27, this election is deeply personal.

One of the main reasons she cast her vote for Joyce Craig for governor is her commitment to reproductive freedom—a choice she believes is crucial for her, her family and all women in the state.

“Even if this child is wanted and loved, if something were to happen, something that impacted my health or the health of our baby, I would want to be protected, I would want to have access to health care and I would want to my child to have the same rights,” Frost said. “So knowing that Joyce is going to get out there and then protect that and enshrine that for New Hampshire is very, very important to me.”

“It’s a very stark difference between the two,” Frost said. “Joyce Craig has proven her dedication to individuals. She listens when you talk to her. She has this very down-to-earth attitude about people and about the struggles that we face every day. I have complete confidence that she’ll protect my rights and the rights of other people in our state.”

Anna Kelly, a librarian who lives in Concord, voted for Democrats down the ticket, including Craig for governor.

“I can’t support someone who supports Donald Trump,” Kelly said of Ayotte. Her overall deciding factor was abortion – she said shes thinks women should have the right to make decisions about their own b odies.

Contact Charlotte Matherly at cmatherly@cmonitor.com. Contact Sruthi Gopalakrishnan at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com.