Gubernatorial candidate Mark Dayton said he was expecting a long night and a close race that could come down to 2,000 votes between him and rival Margaret Anderson Kelliher.

With slighthly more than half of the precincts counted, Kelliher held a 10,000 vote lead over Dayton, who has been closing the margin over the past hour.

"We've got a model we're looking at that says it's too close to call," Dayton said shortly before 10 p.m., noting the Duluth and most of the Iron Range had not yet reported and that he expects to run well in those regions. His running mate, Yvonne Prettner Solon, said, "We expect to do very well in Duluth."

He said the early lead by Kelliher in Hennepin and Ramsey counties was a blow, but explained in part by Kelliher's base in Minneapolis.

"We started out well behind," he said. "We'll see if we can catch up or not."