Lily Wu is officially the first Asian American mayor of Wichita, Kansas. According to KSN, Wu defeated incumbent Brandon Whipple on Tuesday night.
The unofficial final vote count says Wu had 35,859 votes (58.39%) and Whipple had 25,557 (41.61%). Whipple issued a statement conceding the race on Tuesday night.
“I know many of you share my disappointment in yesterday’s results, but I am confident that we still have a bright future ahead of us,” Whipple’s statement said, according to KWCH.
According to her campaign website, Wu is the daughter of working class immigrants. She learned English by watching the local news, eventually earning a master’s degree in journalism and working as a local reporter for KAKE News
Wu ran a campaign on public safety, Salina Post reports. She also insisted she would restore the people’s trust in the City Hall. According to Ballotpedia, during the campaign she identified as a Libertarian.
“I really believe Wichitans spoke loud and clear that we need to get back to basics. We need to ensure public safety, growing our economy and trust in City Hall, and I believe that with six council members, we can have an agenda that works for all Wichitans, and we need to keep working towards marking Wichita a better place to live, work and raise a family,” Mayor-elect Wu said, according to KSN.
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