A Democratic Party “rising star” who was enthusiastically backed by former Vice President Kamala Harris lost a special election by nearly three percentage points in a city Harris carried by 10 percentage points in 2024.

Spiro Cheriogotis, a Republican, defeated Democratic Party challenger Barbara Drummond after receiving 51.39 percent of the vote to Drummond’s 48.61 percent. While the office was already held by a Republican in outgoing Mayor Sandy Stimpson, the race was projected to be very competitive, with many election analysts projecting a Drummond win due to Stimpson’s incumbency advantage and the city’s lean in the 2024 presidential election, when then-Vice President Kamala Harris secured 55 percent of the vote to President Donald Trump’s 44 percent.

The former vice president weighed in on the race while during a recent interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, in which she referred to Drummond as a “rising star” in the Democratic Party. “Let me just say this, [Zohran Mamdani] is not the only star,” Harris said when asked about the New York City mayoral race.

“I mean, there are people like Barbara Drummond in Mobile, Alabama; Helena Moreno in New Orleans.They’re all running for mayor, too, and they are stars.”

Drummond thanked the former vice president in a social media post on Monday night, a little under 24 hours before polls closed. “So grateful to Vice President Kamala Harris for her kind words about this campaign,” she posted on X.

“Being called ‘a star in our party’ is an honor — but what means the most is the opportunity to serve the people of Mobile. Together, we are going to build a Mobile that works for ALL of us.”

Harris’ support ultimately proved inconsequential, however, as the race was called for Cheriogotis, 42,  just a little over two hours after polls closed. The mayor-elect celebrated his victory with family and supporters, including current Mayor Stimpson, at a rally shortly after the race was called.

The race marked the first open mayoral contest in 20 years after Stimpson announced that he would not be seeking a fourth term.

“Thank you for every Mobilian who put your trust in me and in this campaign,” Cheriogotis said. “From the very beginning, we said that this will be a campaign for Mobilians run by Mobilians. Tonight, the people of mobile have spoken.”