The historic city of Charleston, South Carolina has elected its first Republican mayor since the Reconstruction era.

William Cogswell, formerly a Republican state lawmaker, defeated incumbent Democratic Mayor John Tecklenburg by about 2 percentage points in Tuesday’s election, according to the South Carolina Election Commission. The results posted online by the committee showed a margin of 569 votes between the two candidates.

Cogswell, 48, had won the most votes in the Nov. 7 general election, but not a majority, sending him and Tecklenburg into Tuesday’s runoff.

Municipal elections in Charleston are technically nonpartisan. But Tecklenburg is a well-known figure in the state’s Democratic politics, having endorsed Joe Biden in South Carolina’s crucial 2020 presidential primary.

Cogswell, who served three terms as a Republican in the state House and describes himself as a moderate, received support from others within South Carolina Republican Party political circles, including Sen. Tim Scott.

Charleston: a city of historic firsts

Charleston last elected a Republican mayor in the 1870s, according to historical records from the city and other municipal areas. Republicans, including GOP Chairman Drew McKissick and U.S. Rep. Russell Fry, who served with Cogswell in the state House, celebrated the GOP victory in social media posts and statements.

We can say with confidence that I will be the next mayor, Cogswell said Tuesday night as the final results came in. The people have spoken and were ready for a new direction… a new direction that puts aside labels so we can find pragmatic solutions to our problems.

In a concession speech Tuesday evening, Teckleburg called his eight years as mayor the honor of a lifetime and asked his supporters to rally around the new mayor.

“I would like to congratulate our new new Mayor William Cogswell…and I would ask every Charlestonian, everyone out there, to give him your support,” Tecklenburg said. “If Mayor Cogswell succeeds, Charleston succeeds. , and we are all in favor of that.

The city of Charleston has become the second reliably blue area in South Carolina where Republicans have dominated congressional and state politics in recent years to elect a Republican mayor. In 2021, Daniel Rickenmann, a longtime council member backed by Republicans, was elected mayor of Columbia, the capital of South Carolina.