The man who The New York Times said stole the show during the first gubernatorial debate in New Jersey has conceded.

Pre-election polls showed Independent gubernatorial candidate Chris Daggett attracting up to 20% of the voters. But when it finally came down to the election booth many of his supporters abandoned him in what was believed to be a tight race between Democrat Governor Jon Corzine and Republican Christopher Christie.

In the end, with two-thirds of the state’s precincts reporting results, Daggett attracted about 5 percent of the vote. He made his concession speech shortly before 10 p.m.

Daggett’s initial popularity surpirsed many political observers in the Garden State. He even won the endorsement of the state’s most influential newspaper.