AURORA, Ill. (WLS) — Many suburban communities voted on key leadership positions Tuesday.

With over 50 races being decided in Kane County, Clerk Jack Cunningham said earlier Tuesday that more than 19,000 people had voted early so far, and they have received more than 16,000 mail-in ballots.

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Fueling the motivation to vote for some appeared to be the race for mayor in Aurora, the state’s second-largest city.

Incumbent Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin conceded the race to challenger Aurora Alderman John Laesch around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“It is with a heavy heavy heart, heavy heart that I accept that I’m not going to continue on as mayor of this city. Absolute pride to be this city’s leader. Not about me; it’s about all of you,” Irvin said.

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Irvin and Laesch were the top two vote-getters in the Feb. 25 election that led to this runoff. They were separated by just 500 votes at the time.

Irvin, who sought a third term, has aligned himself with President Donald Trump, but in this local election, he touted efforts to reduce crime and boost economic development, including a new casino and hotel scheduled to open next year.

“Over the least seven years, we’ve done more economic development than in the last 70. I would just say that there are old buildings that sat empty for 50, 60, 70 years until I became mayor, and as soon as I became mayor, we worked hard on getting them filled,” Irvin said.

Irvin ran unsuccessfully in 2022 for the GOP nomination for Illinois governor.

Laesch is a former naval intelligence officer and union carpenter who lost to Irvin four years ago.

An alderman at large for Aurora who wants to see ethics lead city projects, he is critical of recent incentives to big developers and has received much attention and support from the Democratic Party.

“A lot of working families are hurting right now struggling with inflation, and these are the kinds of things that benefit the wealthy, not the working class. So, in Aurora, we are going to have to focus on making single-family homes more affordable instead of subsidizing high-end that nobody in our city can afford,” Laesch said.

On Tuesday night, Irvin blamed what he called “hateful” politics for his loss.

And over in Evanston, Mayor Daniel Biss is projected to win a second term in office with 62.08% of the vote and 100% of precincts reporting, according to the Cook County Clerk’s Office.

He highlighted accomplishments in public safety, affordable housing and climate action, pledging to continue moving the city forward with a progressive agenda, he says, over the next four years.

He ran against Jeff Boarini, who retired from a career in corporate media production and consulting.