Tanmay Shah, a progressive housing lawyer and labor organizer, has officially defeated Cleveland City Council incumbent Danny Kelly for a West Side ward seat, an automatic recount by the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections confirmed Monday.
Shah, a democratic socialist with a campaign centered around affordability and reliable city services, is the only newcomer to oust a sitting council member in a municipal election dominated by incumbents. He will be the youngest member on council at 29 years old.
"I’m grateful and really excited for what we have in store," Shah told Ideastream. "What we knew from the start has been validated; when we talk to people about their material conditions and their day-to-day life about how city government should be better, they will listen and they want to see change."
Shah will represent Ward 12, which extends from the West Side's Edgewater neighborhood to West Boulevard under recently redistricted maps. That new ward boundary most closely resembles Danny Kelly's current Ward 11.
Shah's nine-vote lead held after the less-than-half-percent margin automatically triggered a recount, alongside four other races in the county. The Board of Elections conducted the recount for the council race Monday.
Danny Kelly, who was appointed by his predecessor Brian Mooney in 2023, conceded the race to Shah last week after the recount was announced.
“This race was unbelievably close because my team – and his – worked their tails off,” Kelly wrote in a written statement. “I want to thank everyone who volunteered for me. I’m so grateful to have you in my corner. Now, let’s do everything we can to help Councilmember-elect Shah succeed, for the sake of the new Ward 12 and the City of Cleveland. This election is truly proof that EVERY VOTE COUNTS!”
Kelly, a retired union laborer, won the special election in the fall following his appointment to confirm his spot in office. This was Kelly's first competitive race, armed with a mayoral endorsement and financial backing from the Council Leadership Fund, a political action committee controlled by city council's president. Kelly held an 18% lead over Shah in the September primary.
But Shah's grassroots organizing, dozens of volunteers and promises to shake up the "establishment politics" of Cleveland City Hall pushed him over the finish line in the general election.
Shah will be sworn in alongside the rest of his council cohort, which includes two other new members, in January.
