More Than A Week After Election Day, City Of Alameda Finds Out Who Will Be Their Next Mayor
ALAMEDA (KCBS)_ Alameda Mayor Marie Gilmore conceded her re-election race Wednesday morning against school board member Trish Spencer after a week of vote counting left her trailing by only 129 votes.
Gilmore thanked her supporters for their work at a news conference and called it a historically-close vote, adding that she formed some "great friendships" along the way.
"If we had wanted to we could have had enough money to do a recount, but it's not in anybody's interest to do that," Gilmore told KCBS.
Gilmore made Alameda history when she became the first African-American to be elected mayor of the city in 2010.
Spencer spent only $9,000 on her campaign, but edged out a victory with a groundswell of support because of Alameda voters' frustrations with City Hall and the direction of development in the island city, she said in a phone interview.
"It really seems like there's no effective communication between City Hall and the community," Spencer said.
Spencer said she advocates for more considered development and will seek to preserve more open space and wetlands as the city moves forward in developing its former Navy base.
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