After a contentious campaign cycle for Durham, Mayor Leonardo Williams celebrated his reelection on the night of Tuesday, Nov. 4 among a crowd of supporters at Ekhaya, a restaurant in downtown Durham. He won against his opponent, Anjanée Bell, by 7,100 votes.

“I want to tell you what this campaign represents,” Williams said in a speech at the event. “We woke up with hope, every day. We woke up with love, every day. We woke up with community on our mind, every single day.”

Around 50 people attended the election watch party, which was a joint event with Williams and incumbent Mayor Pro Tempore Mark-Anthony Middleton, who was also awaiting election results that evening. Middleton ran for City Council Ward II and lost to Shanetta Burris by 16,700 votes.

“Leo pulled off a marvelous victory,” Middleton said. “He’s a mayor that’s brought dignity back to the office, has restored collegiality to the dais. You don’t have to agree with him on all his policies, but we’re a deliberative body.”

Middleton said he called Burris and congratulated her on a well-run campaign, pledging his full support to her and asking his supporters to unite behind the new leadership.

“His race didn’t turn out the way we wanted it,” Williams said about Middleton in his speech. “But what that really means is his presence is about to be louder. He’s still my rock, still my foundation, and we’re about to get this community back in check, not only from the inside but then from the outside. So stay tuned.”

Middleton said the people in the room tonight were friends, family and supporters, but one of the things that united them was that “this darn thing is over,” calling the campaign cycle “exhausting.”

“I’ve been around for a minute, and been involved in a couple of these,” Middleton said. “This has been the most toxic, unkind, mean-spirited election cycle I have seen in awhile. So it’s really difficult to overstate, I think, just how relieved people are that it’s over.”

Williams echoed similar feelings to Middleton’s around the negativity he woke up to every day during the race, saying he would often wonder, “What attack is it today?”

From the “wanted” posters that were hung throughout the city aimed at Middleton and Williams, to pushback against Williams’ use of the “YN” acronym, both candidates have been caught up in various controversies surrounding this year’s election.

In a Facebook post against the pair on Nov. 1 by Bull City Vanguard, former mayoral candidate Zaidi Rafiq commented, calling votes for Williams the “final death knell for what’s left of the Black Durham community.”

Williams’ has also been criticized for his position on development, which his opponents have critiqued as being too often in favor of new constructions.

“By now, the developers should take care of them for the dirty sell-out job they have already done,” Rafiq continued in his comment.

Farther north, a different election watch party took place. Supporters of council candidates Shanetta Burris, DeDreana Freeman and Chelsea Cook, many of whom were in support of Williams’ opponent, Anjanée Bell, were taking his victory in a different stride.

“I think, unfortunately, Anjanée Bell came in late and didn’t have a strong enough campaign, but a lot of people were looking for Leo Williams to not win,” Durham resident Rachel Kaufman said. “I think that progressives, the left, should have thought more seriously about what energy to put into what candidates.”

Kaufman said she hopes for candidates to consider ethics, environmental sustainability and the consequences of gentrification on Black people when making decisions on development.

Williams acknowledged the sentiments of those who have often criticized him in his speech. He urged the media to report “more than this opinion,” and clarified that his goal was to diversify Durham’s tax base.

“I don’t make promises I can’t keep, but I promise you that this city will be led with love and care,” Williams said in his speech. “Because it will always be stronger than hate. So to the haters, I love you too.”

Williams thanked his immediate and extended family, his campaign team, his friends, the People’s Alliance and the Friends of Durham endorsements, local businesses, media organizations and many others for their support.

Williams said his top priorities include reducing crime, addressing housing affordability and homelessness, and fostering economic development through diversifying tax revenue.

Alice “Queen Dé” Clayton, a Durham resident and family friend of Williams’, said she came to the event to celebrate his win. She said she’s seen a lot of success with the changes Williams has made so far, and that he brings community and unity to Durham.

“That’s why we’re here, because we know that he has what it takes,” she said. “He has shown and proved that he has what it takes to be a leader and to help this city.”

Amena Matcheswala contributed to the reporting of this story.