Waukesha’s race for mayor remained too close to call Tuesday night, with Democrat Alicia Halvensleben holding a narrow lead over Republican state Rep. Scott Allen as about 88 percent of the ballots were counted.
The contest is deciding who will replace Mayor Shawn Reilly, who is not seeking re-election. Reilly, an independent who left the Republican Party, gave the race a sharper edge last year when he endorsed Kamala Harris in 2024, a move that stood out in a city that has long leaned Republican.
The election is officially nonpartisan, but the partisan labels around the two candidates have shaped the race all the same. Halvensleben, the president of the city’s Common Council, had the slight advantage as counting continued, and the margin was still thin enough that no winner could be called.
That leaves Waukesha waiting for the final ballots to settle a contest that could decide whether the suburban Milwaukee city keeps its recent political drift or turns back toward the party that has traditionally dominated there.