Racine mayoral race: Cory Mason beats Henry Perez

RACINE, Wis. - Incumbent Racine Mayor Cory Mason faced a challenge from Alderman Henry Perez in Wisconsin's spring election Tuesday, April 4, and Mason won.

Mason's supporters at his watch party Tuesday night said they were optimistic the results would be in their favor.

At Dewey's, Perez and his supporters were also feeling very positive.

Mason was emotional when delivering his victory speech, thanking his family for their support and the community for believing in the work he has done.

He thanked his opponent for giving voters a choice.

Mason will serve another four years as mayor and said he has plans to build a stronger community.

"It is a humbling thing as an elected official to basically reapply for your job in an election and to ask the voters, do I have your confidence to continue on in this role?" said Mason.

Cory Mason

The race was nonpartisan, but the two candidates have opposing views on a lot of topics.

Mason has served as mayor for five years. Previously, he was a Democratic state representative. 

Perez, a Republican, is a special educator for the Racine Unified School District and a former police officer. 

A topic the two disagree on is violence in the city. 

Mason said his team has cracked down on gun violence, with crime down 18% amid their crime reduction initiative.

Perez argued the city isn't safe, saying the police department is down 39 officers in 2023.

FOX6 News spoke with both candidates ahead of the polls closing.

Henry Perez, Cory Mason

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"People want to know what you’re going to do to protect the right to vote, a woman’s right to choose, how you’re going to create a safe and healthy community," said Mason. 

"I just want people to feel confident when they go outside that this is a community where they can work, live and thrive and play because that’s very important for mental health," said Perez.