Democrat Larry Krasner Elected Philadelphia District Attorney

“This is what a movement looks like,” he said during a victory speech.
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WASHINGTON — Democratic candidate Larry Krasner, a civil rights defense attorney with a history of suing the Philadelphia Police Department, has been elected as the city’s top prosecutor.

The heavy favorite following his May primary win, Krasner coasted to a victory Tuesday night over Republican opponent Beth Grossman. The Associated Press called the race shortly after 9 p.m.

In a speech to supporters Tuesday night, Krasner promised his election would herald “transformational change” in Philadelphia’s criminal justice system and a fairness “for a system that has systematically picked on black and brown people,” as The Inquirer reported.

“This is what a movement looks like,” he said.

Krasner, an advocate of criminal justice reform and an opponent of the death penalty and mass incarceration, has been hailed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and other progressives.

“At a time when Attorney General [Jeff] Sessions is pushing the Department of Justice to restart the failed ‘War on Drugs,’ it is refreshing to see voters choose a prosecutor who wants to treat addiction as an illness, not a crime, and move to end mass incarceration,” Sanders said following Krasner’s primary win.

Sister Helen Prejean, a Roman Catholic nun and death penalty opponent, was among those who congratulated Krasner on Tuesday.

In February, Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams announced he would not seek a third term. He was later indicted on 29 federal fraud charges involving campaign funds and other financial disclosures, and, after pleading guilty to a bribery charge, was sentence in October to five years in prison.

Among those who swooped in to support Krasner’s candidacy were the Democratic Socialists of America, veterans of the Sanders presidential campaign and the Black Lives Matter movement.

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