WASHINGTON (TIP): In a first, Montesano attorney Vini Samuel was elected mayor of Montesano, Washington by landslide victory making her the first Indian American female mayor in the United States. Samuel received more than 67 percent of the vote, leading 762 to 366.

“It’s wonderful, it’s exciting and I’m overwhelmed with gratitude,” Samuel said on November 03, 2015. “This has always been about Montesano and coming together as one town and trying to get things done. I think the race went perfectly. We worked really hard and I appreciate the show of confidence. I think we ran a pretty solid, positive campaign. The goal was always about coming together and keeping the city of Montesano as the focus of the conversation,” she added.

Samuel, who was born in Quilon, Kerala, and raised in Juneau, Alaska, characterized the tiny town of Montesano as “a little piece of Americana.” Samuel attended Western Washington University, where she received a B.A. in history and English literature; she obtained her law degree from Seattle University.

Samuel, who has previously served on Montesano’s city council, said she was campaigning on the issue of transparency in city politics.

The tiny town of Montesano in northwest Washington State has approximately 2,300 registered voters.

All results on November 03, 2015 were preliminary results. Ballots mailed were still valid and ballot drop boxes throughout the county remained uncounted.

The election will be certified on Nov. 24. However, Incumbent Ken Estes conceded the race soon after the initial tally of votes by the Grays Harbor County Auditor’s office.