Mayor Lester Lunceford, who has served as mayor of Whittier for more than a decade and who also currently serves on the state’s Human Rights Commission, has been officially recalled. On election night, he survived the ballot count. There were 50 votes in favor of the recall and 55 votes opposed. There were also 29 uncounted absentee ballots. On Tuesday night, the absentee ballots were counted and Lunceford lost by 15 votes.

Lunceford, who has been mayor of the town for 11 years, has long been the target of complaints. Most recently, the complaints stem from the way the city’s manager Tom Bolen was hired.

Vice Mayor Daniel Blair will take over the city reins immediately as acting mayor.

Contact Amanda Coyne at amandamcoyne@yahoo.com