Voters elected progressive civil rights lawyer Larry Krasner to be the next district attorney for Philadelphia on Tuesday.
Krasner beat out Republican Beth Grossman, who had won the endorsement of the Philadelphia Inquirer, and in her concession speech said she felt “honored and privileged to have run this race,” according to the newspaper.
Krasner, who according to his website has represented Black Lives Matter and DACA “Dreamers,” among others, has campaigned on changing the “culture” of the district attorney’s office, “from a culture of seeking victory for prosecutors to a culture of seeking justice for victims.”
The city’s newest chief prosecutor has filed “more than 75 civil rights lawsuits against the police for corruption and physical abuse,” according to Krasner’s website.
His platform included a pledge to “never seek the death penalty,” and has taken aim directly at policies of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Krasner’s website said the progressive candidate is “dedicated to fighting President Trump’s anti-immigration agenda and increasing trust between immigrants and police,” and adds that Krasner “will work to maintain Philadelphia as a ‘sanctuary city.'”
The Inquirer reported in August that Philadelphia was one of several cities to sue the Trump administration over Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ effort to withhold federal dollars from local governments as an effort to curb sanctuary cities across the nation.
The former Philadelphia district attorney, Democrat Seth Williams, pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges in June.
Voters headed to the ballot box Tuesday for several elections around the nation, including the New Jersey and Virginia governor races.
