Harrisburg, Pa. - Harrisburg Mayor Stephen Reed conceded defeat Tuesday night to City Council President Linda Thompson in the Democratic primary.

Reed finished the race with just over 2,400 votes - compared to Thompson, who received just shy of 3,500 votes, according to an unofficial tally.

"We live in a democracy and citizens, of course, have the right to chose as they wish," he told supporters. "I've always respected that. I respected it when I won elections and I respect it tonight as well. The voters have made a different choice and they will get some change, we hope for the better, as a result - and I smile when I say that."

Reed said Thompson ran a negative campaign that was just too much for him to overcome.

"Our opposition was constantly bad-mouthing everything and there was a relentless effort for disinformation and misinformation coming out," he said. "To be honest, I have never seen a volume of that kind of misinformation ever in my entire career."

Reed, whose 28 years in the office make him the longest-serving mayor in the city's history, gave no indication that he would consider a write-in candidacy in the fall.

He was first-elected mayor of Harrisburg in 1982, a year after Pennsylvania's capital was given the status as the second most distressed city in the nation. He is credited with initiating the city's economic revival with projects such as City Island, The National Civil War Museum and Whitaker Center for Science and Arts.

His proposed Wild West Museum, however, was heavily criticized and eventually abandoned when it was disclosed that the city had paid $8.3 million for more than 10,000 artifacts. Additional firepower for his opponents came from the city's trash incinerator and its $300 million debt.

A poll conducted two weeks before the election by Susquehanna Polling and Research showed Reed leading Thompson by 15 points. Twenty percent of voters, however, were undecided.

"I knew I had to put in a very aggressive plan," Thompson said of her victory. "I knew I had to get out and get the vote and I knew I had to tell the people the truth and that's exactly what I did."

"The people just said enough is enough and it's time for a change, and not just change for change sake," she said. "And they had enough of Steve Reed. They had enough of his lawlessness."

Political activist Les Ford also ran in the Democratic primary. Nevin Mindlin was unopposed in the Republican primary.

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