Councilmember Suzie Price conceded the mayoral race to her colleague, Councilmember Rex Richardson, Tuesday morning after the latest vote tally showed him with a lead of 10.5 percentage points.

Price, 50, said that although there are still thousands of votes left to be counted, “the trend is going the wrong direction for our campaign.”

Richardson’s lead as of Tuesday morning was 8,166 votes. There were about 655,000 votes left to count across all of Los Angeles County, according to elections officials, but it’s unclear how many of them are from Long Beach because there are about 90 other cities included in that ballot total.

“It appears that the people of Long Beach have spoken and selected Vice Mayor Richardson as our next mayor,” Price said in her statement. “I wish him nothing but success on the journey ahead.”

The result of the mayoral race could be the end of Price’s political career. An Orange County deputy district attorney, Price has served as a council member for eight years, representing the city’s 3rd District in southeast Long Beach. She previously told the Long Beach Post that this was the last office she planned to seek.

Richardson, 39, who has also been on the City Council for eight years, sent a statement Tuesday declaring victory in the race, saying he will announce a transition team on Wednesday.

“I want to commend Councilmember Suzie Price for sharing her ideas for the future of our city,” he wrote. “She and I share a love for Long Beach and want to ensure every resident is safe and thriving. I look forward to collaborating with her and her supporters to unify our city and move us forward.”

He said as mayor, he will “focus on tackling our city’s biggest challenges and working daily to make City Hall more responsive to residents’ needs.”

If the results hold, Richardson will assume office on Dec. 20.

This story has been updated to include a statement from Rex Richardson. 

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