Mayor Van Johnson won his bid for a second term on Tuesday night, beating political rival Kesha Gibson-Carter and newcomer Tyrisha Davis. Johnson cleared the field, taking 77.31% of the 21,696 votes cast.
Johnson won every precinct in Savannah.
"Seventy seven percent is a mandate that people are satisfied," Johnson said after his watch party at The Odyssey 2.0.
Johnson's victory culminates four years of conflict on city council between Johnson and Gibson-Carter. Gibson-Carter vacated her Post 1 At-Large seat to make her bid for mayor.
Gibson-Carter did not respond to request for comment Tuesday night, but she did post early Wednesday to social media, her preferred method of communicating with the community the past four years.
Johnson carried a huge lead with the early vote where he had 80% when the first ballots were uploaded around 7:20 p.m. That percentage barely wavered all night as votes continued to be counted.
Johnson's watch party was attended by former mayors Otis Johnson and Edna Jackson.
"We're just excited, because we know that Van Johnson and his administration has done a tremendous job moving this city forward," Jackson said at the watch party.
Credit: Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News
Credit: Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News
Johnson said the atmosphere at the watch party was “electric.” This campaign was more tiring than four years ago due to its lack of civility, Johnson said.
“This one was much more satisfying to me, much more satisfying,” Johnson said. “It really is a repudiation of the things that have been said about us.
The final votes were registered around 10 p.m., according to the Chatham County Board of Elections results tracker.
Evan Lasseter is the city and county government reporter. You can reach him at ELasseter@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Van wins it all: Johnson carries every precinct in Savannah mayor reelection bid
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