concession speech

インド総選挙で「インド人民党」が圧勝する見通しとなっています。

Indian National Congress Concedes Defeat to Opposition Leader Narendra Modi

The Indian National Congress, which has headed India’s government for nearly all the country’s post-Independence history, formally conceded defeat to the opposition leader Narendra Modi on Friday, as voters rendered a crushing verdict on their country’s flagging economic growth and a
drumbeat of corruption scandals.

Election officials had not yet finished counting the 550 million votes cast in the five-week general elections, but the contours of Congress’s defeat quickly became clear. Rahul Gandhi, the heir apparent to the political dynasty that forms Congress party’s backbone, appeared headed for a narrow victory in his own home constituency, a stronghold he won by more than 300,000 votes in 2009.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/17/world/asia/india-elections.html?emc=edit_na_20140516

concedeは「譲歩する」でおさえている人が多いと思いますが、選挙の文脈で用いられる場合、「を事実と認める」という意味になります。とくにdefeatを目的語にとるときには「敗北をしぶしぶと受け入れる、認める」となります。

concedeで想起するのが、選挙に負けた候補者、党首などがおこなうconcession speech（敗北宣言）です。このconcessionは文字通り「相手に勝ちを譲る」わけですが、これをおこなうかどうかが、その人、党の器の大きさを示すことになり、アメリカではその潔さが重視されます。インドでも同じ伝統が根付いているのでしょうか。（UG）