CHICAGO  — Dan Hynes conceded the Illinois Democratic gubernatorial primary to Pat Quinn two days after the primary election, after vote counts showed him about 8,000 votes behind.

Illinois State Comptroller, who lost to Gov. Pat Quinn by a razor-thin margin in the Democratic gubernatorial primary last week, reportedly has no interest in taking Scott Lee Cohen’s place as Quinn’s running mate.

Cohen dropped his bid for lieutenant governor on Sunday, under intense pressure from top Democrats over allegations he abused his ex-wife and an ex-girlfriend. Cohen has denied those allegations.

Hynes was seen as a potential replacement for Cohen as the Democratic nominee and Quinn’s running mate, in what some viewed as a chance to reunite the party after a divisive primary battle between the Quinn and Hynes.

“He wants to be an advocate for the party, but he is not interested in the lieutenant governor position,” Hynes campaign spokesman Matt McGrath told the Chicago Sun-Times on Monday.

During the campaign, Hynes had suggested the lieutenant governor’s office should be eliminated to save money on the state budget.

The office has very few statutory powers and its only constitutional duty is to replace the governor should he die in office or otherwise leave office before his term expires. If a lieutenant governor leaves office or steps in to replace the governor, the lieutenant governor’s office remains vacant until after the next election.

The 38-member Democratic State Central Committee will choose Cohen’s replacement. The group is to meet in March, but could meet sooner to pick Cohen’s replacement.

State Rep. Art Turner came in second to Cohen in the primary and has expressed interest in replacing Cohen on the November ballot. The other candidates in the primary were State Sen. Rickey Hendon, State Sen. Terry Link, State Rep. Mike Boland and electrician Thomas Castillo.

Some observers have also mentioned State Rep. Julie Hamos, who lost a primary bid for Congress, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, who lost a bid for state comptroller.

Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.