FLINT, MI - Flint Mayor Karen Weaver has survived the recall election against her, according to unofficial results reported by the Genesee County Clerk's office.

In a landslide victory, the Flint mayor pulled ahead in the 18-person mayoral race, snagging nearly 53 percent of Flint's vote, according to unofficial results.

She will now serve out the remainder of her elected term until November 2019.

"I love Flint, I've always seen such promise and possibility for this city, and I think we're going to continue on that path that we've started," Weaver said at her watch party across the street from her City Hall office in downtown Flint. "It's time to get back to work."

Longtime Ninth Ward Flint City Councilman Scott Kincaid, Weaver's nearest challenger, trailed the mayor by nearly 3,000 votes, pulling approximately 32 percent of the vote.

At his watch party at the Flint Golf Club, Kincaid said the defeat marks his end to 32 years of public service in Flint.

"We raised a lot of important concerns during this campaign, and I hope they will be considered as the mayor and council move forward in Flint," Kincaid said. "Flint can become a better city if everyone can work together ... I will do everything I can to move this city forward."

Weaver, Flint's first female mayor, assumed city leadership in November 2015, beating the incumbent Dayne Walling by 1,764 votes.

A political novice, Weaver, 58, called for a federal investigation into the Flint water crisis and many of the citizens who were active in demanding an end to the use of the river joined in her 2015 campaign.

Once in office, Weaver declared the city in a state of emergency and became the face of Flint on the national stage as the lead-in-water crisis gained attention.

However, building tensions over Weaver agreeing to an emergency collection contract with Rizzo Environmental Services - a move recall leader-turned-mayoral candidate Arthur Woodson suggested was for personal monetary gain - and caused the resident to take steps to file a petition.

Woodson, who earned nearly 2.5 percent of Tuesday's votes, argued that there was "no real trash emergency" in the city because a Genesee County judge had previously ordered the city to continue using Republic Waste Services - rather than Rizzo - to haul Flint's trash.

Going forward, Weaver says she's going to "keep doing what we've started."

"We're going to continue with those lead service lines, we're gonna continue to bring businesses and make sure we're focused on economic development, make sure we're focused on what we need to do as far as public safety," she said.