State Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Rose Fernandez of the town of Mukwonago pauses for a moment while conceding to her rival, Tony Evers, Tuesday at the County Springs Hotel in Waukesha.

Rose Fernandez (left) and Tony Evers are shown in these file photos.

WAUKESHA - 
As state superintendent candidate Rose Fernandez took the stage Tuesday night at the Country Springs Hotel, she didn’t speak as a candidate who lost, but as someone optimistic about the future.

"Despite the spending gap, we gave them a run for their money," she told a crowd of supporters while surrounded by her family. "(W)e were a scrappy bunch.

Fernandez, of the town of Mukwonago, lost to assistant state Superintendent Tony Evers Tuesday in the state superintendent race by a vote of 57 percent to 43 percent, based on preliminary results.

Fernandez blamed her loss on the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the teachers union.

‘‘We gave WEAC one heck of a battle,’’ she said. ‘‘In the end, we couldn’t overcome that 10-1 disadvantage in money and not being able to be up on TV.’’

WEAC reported spending more than $685,000 on the race. Fernandez only raised about $78,000.

Evers’ TV ads helped convince 30-year-old Wausau banker Brad Kene to vote for him.

‘‘From the ads that I saw, he seemed to be a man of character and a little more experienced in education than his opponent,’’ Kene said.

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