Phoenix City Council candidates Betty Guardado and Carlos Garcia were leading in early returns Tuesday night.

Guardado's lead was significant when the city stopped counting ballots for the evening.

Garcia and his opponent, Michael Johnson, were within a few hundred votes.

About 1,800 ballots remain to be counted, a city spokesman said.

The city will resume tabulating Wednesday, but an update is not expected until late in the day.

The election will end a year of uncertainty on the Phoenix City Council that began when former Mayor Greg Stanton resigned to run for Congress.

Guardado faced off against interim Councilwoman Vania Guevara in District 5, which represents most of west Phoenix.

Garcia competed against retired police officer and former Councilman Michael Johnson in District 8, which includes parts of downtown and south Phoenix.

Both districts represent diverse, underserved communities that are hungry for a leader who will fight at City Hall to get a fair share of resources for the historically overlooked parts of the city.

Guevara and Guardado are very similar.

Both are progressive Latina woman who have been involved in city government but have never run for office.

Guevara worked as a staffer in the District 5 council office for five years; Guardado has been involved in the local hotel workers union, Unite Here Local 11, for 21 years — most recently as the union's director of organizing and vice president.

Garcia and Johnson could not be more different.

Garcia is a first-time candidate and community organizer who fights for migrant rights and has been critical of the Phoenix Police Department.

Johnson is a retired Phoenix police detective and was the city councilman for District 8 from 2002-2013.

Why a May election?

Last year, Stanton resigned to run for Congress, triggering a series of City Hall shake-ups that will conclude with the May election.

After Stanton's departure, council members Daniel Valenzuela and Kate Gallego — who represented District 5 and District 8 respectively — resigned to run for mayor. Gallego ultimately won.

The council in August appointed Guevara and Felicita Mendoza to serve as interim council members for the districts.

In March, four candidates in District 5 and seven candidates in District 8 were on the ballot — but no one in either race received the 50 percent plus one vote needed to win outright, triggering the May runoff.

Guardado received the most votes in District 5 with 38 percent of the vote. Guevara came in second with 25 percent.

Garcia led in District 8 with 29 percent, followed by Johnson with 22 percent.

Have problems voting? Reach the reporter at jessica.boehm@gannett.com or 480-694-1823. Follow her on Twitter @jboehm_NEWS.

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