Though the votes have yet to be certified by the Democratic Party, District Attorney Ed Greene acknowledged defeat to local attorney Michael Jackson in the June 1 primary.

The race came down to just 450 votes and in the end, the challenger was ahead of the incumbent.

“The provisional ballots have been tallied and forwarded to the Democratic Party,” Greene said. “The numbers have not substantially changed.

Michael has won the election.”

According to Greene, out of 113 provisional ballots in Dallas County, 51 were allowed and Jackson took the majority of those, 31-20.

Assuming a write-in candidate in the November election does not beat Jackson, he will become the state’s second black district attorney in January of 2005.

“I do want to thank Ed for many years of service (in the district attorney’s office). He fought a good and tough fight in this election,” Jackson said last week.

“I leave a good office with good people in place,” Greene said. ” We were looking to the future and beyond in building an office that has good people that represent many different walks of life. I trust and hope that Mike will see fit to retain many of them.”

The office currently has three vacancies that Greene said will be temporarily filled with legal assistants.

“The work in this office will continue to be done,” he said. “The business of this office and the case load that it is faced with will keep me busy from now until January.”

After that Greene said he will be available to assist prosecutors around the state as well as work on civil law.

“From my standpoint I sought to win the election and am disappointed but I will join the ranks of the supernumerary district attorneys,” Greene said. “I expect I’ll find a little more time to chase these five grandchildren around the countryside and do a better job of trying to raise cows and deer.”

Though the transition will not take place until January, Greene said work on the transition will begin fairly soon.

“I hope to meet with Mike very soon to discuss the transition and matters that have to be dealt with,” Greene said. ”

When the transition takes place in January, Greene said it would close a chapter of his life.

“I have, for the most part, been a career prosecutor,” he said.