In a heated election that had the whole city talking, Lakewood politician
Bob Murphy has narrowly defeated activist
Rita Bertolli, according to the unofficial results.
"I'm very happy with the decision the voters of Lakewood have made," Murphy said. "I'm honored the citizens of Lakewood have chosen me to serve as mayor."
Despite allegations of sign-stealing, Murphy said he feels he led a positive campaign on the issues and that he "couldn't be happier" with how it went.
Although he has yet to work out the exact methodology, Murphy said he wants to get as many different people involved with the city as possible, including those who did not support him during the election.
"We want to reach out to everyone, including Rita herself, and everyone she represents, and we plan to start that as soon as we take office Nov. 26," Murphy said.
Murphy replaces term-limited
Steve Burkholder.
Bertolli did not return phone calls for comment late Tuesday.
The third candidate for mayor,
Linda Delay, said it was fun and interesting to be involved with the race, but she doesn't play to run for office again anytime soon.
"I think I'll be an active citizen for right now," she said. "The race was more geared toward Rita and Bob. They had the money to do fliers and create more publicity than me."
Delay said she became friendly with Bertolli during the race, because "we were on the same page on a lot of stuff."
To see the final unofficial results, click
here.