The Democratic candidate said that, though they would continue to push to have votes counted in Ohio and other states, there was no way the result would change. He conceded defeat to President George W. Bush in a phone call earlier in the day and said the two talked about "the desperate need for unity in our country."

Bitter opponents on the campaign trail, Kerry said he was prepared to reach across partisan lines to help Bush build bridges in a deeply divided America.

"I did my best to expression my vision and hopes for America," he said. "In an American election, there are no losers, because whether or not a candidate is successful, the next morning we all wake up as Americans and that is the greatest privilege...that can come to us on earth."

Praises supporters, young voters

The Senator's voice broke several times during his speech in which he thanked his family, friends, staff and the countless supporters he met criss-crossing the United States as part of his campaign in the past two years.

"I wish I could reach out my arms and wrap up each one of you individually," Kerry said. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Singilng out the enormous support he enjoyed from young voters in this election as well as the brigades of college students who canvassed and campaigned for him, Kerry urged them not to give up.

"I wish I could have brought this race home for them. I say to them now 'Don't lose faith,'" Kerry said. "The time will come, when your work and your ballots will change the world and its worth fighting for."

Edwards says "battle will rage on"

In a short speech before Kerry's, John Edwards showed flashes of the fiery rhetoric that marked the intense race for the White House in the final months. He urged supporters to continue the fight.

"You can be disappointed but you can't walk away. This fight has just begun," he said. "This campaign may end today but the battle for you and hardworking Americans that built this country rages on."

Earlier in the day, President Bush told Democratic rival John Kerry that he was "very gracious" after the senator conceded defeat in their hard-fought White House race, Bush's spokesman said Wednesday.

Final count uncertain

The admittance of defeat comes as vote results still remain uncertain in the battleground state of Ohio, where some 130,000 provisional votes and an uncertain number of absentee ballots have not been counted.

Earlier in the day, Kerry's campaign team had refused to accept defeat, saying they would not give up until every last vote had been counted in Ohio, whose 20 electoral votes were critical for both candidates to secure the White House.

Bush's campaign managers had called the Democrat's hold-out "delusional" and called on them to concede the election. They pointed to an "insurmountable lead" in Ohio and in the overall popular vote.