WATERVILLE — Republican Mayor Nick Isgro was re-elected to another three-year term Tuesday, defeating challengers Erik Thomas, a Democrat and former city councilor, and newcomer John Levesque, an independent candidate.

Isgro received 1,737 votes to Thomas’ 1,496 and Levesque’s 258.

Waterville mayoral candidates, from left, John Levesque, Erik Thomas and Nick Isgro and Ward 4 City Council candidate Chris Rancourt greet Waterville voters Tuesday at the Thomas College polling place. Staff photo by David Leaming

Voters head to the polls Tuesday to select a mayor at Thomas College in Waterville. Staff photo by Michael G. Seamans

Isgro, 36, assistant vice president and controller at Skowhegan Savings Bank, said just after votes were tallied at Thomas College that he is “incredibly happy and excited to get back to work.”

“This was a campaign where I was largely outspent, and we had people from as far away as Portland coming in and going door-to-door to campaign against me,” Isgro said, “and I’m just so thrilled that the people of Waterville chose what we saw as the Waterville First campaign.”

Thomas, 42, a self-employed printmaker and concert promoter who also works for Port City Music Hall and the State Theatre, said his campaign put up a good fight.

“Congratulations to Nick, and I hope that, moving forward, we can talk about solutions,” Thomas said.

Levesque, 46, an education coordinator and consultant for Professional Disability Associates who also holds registered nurse and paramedicine diplomas, said he tried to run the race with integrity and get his ideas across in a positive manner without attacking his opponents.

“I certainly wish Nick the best, and I let him know today that, regardless of who is sitting in the chair, I’m interested in moving the city forward and doing everything I can to help,” Levesque said.

Isgro was elected mayor in 2014 for a three-year term. He worked with Colby College President David Greene, city officials, downtown businesspeople and arts advocates to help launch a downtown revitalization project designed to help boost economic development, expand the arts, draw more people to live and work downtown, attract businesses and help strengthen existing businesses.

Colby bought several vacant and deteriorating buildings downtown, renovated the former Hains building at 173 Main St., is building a $25 million mixed-use student residential complex across the street and plans to build a boutique hotel next year on the south end of Main Street downtown. The college also demolished the former Elks building on Appleton Street downtown and turned it into a parking lot. Plans for the former Waterville Hardware building on Main Street have not been solidified. The residential complex and the Hains building will have retail businesses on their ground floors.

Isgro said last month that he was seeking re-election because he wanted to continue the work he started as mayor and felt an obligation to fulfill his commitments to the city.

He cited downtown revitalization, working with the Central Maine Growth Council on economic development and supporting development on Trafton Road as some of the efforts he wants to continue working on.

He said that, if elected, his continued focus would be on infrastructure development and job growth to help provide more opportunity for people to live and work in the city. Expanding the tax base so the city can continue to work on having a sustainable property tax rate also is a priority, he said.

He cited challenges facing the city, including the need to ensure the city has a growing tax base so it can continue to provide quality services that residents expect. Working to help stabilize school system finances also is a challenge, he said.

Public and private partnerships such as the one used to help develop the Trafton Road interchange at Interstate 95 will be critical to the city’s future, according to Isgro. Working with other schools to share resources as student population declines also is a focus, he said. It is important, he said, that the city ensure a sustainable education system that complies with federal and state mandates but also provides resources for students of all abilities.

Thomas, a former Planning Board member who served on the City Council from 2011 to 2014 and was its chairman in 2013, said during his campaign that he was running for mayor because he was concerned about what has been going on in the city the last three years, and he and others think some are more interested in gaining power by misleading people than they are in solving problems.

Thomas said he was talking about a faction of people who associate themselves with Isgro, and that they traffic in innuendo and half-truths and mislead people about what is happening in Waterville.

Problems in the community cannot be solved until people agree on what they are and how they occurred, and that is the mayor’s responsibility — to communicate with the outside world and city residents, according to Thomas.

Levesque said last month that he was running for mayor because he is disappointed in the political process and was encouraged by others to run for office. While campaigning, Levesque said he found that people predominantly were concerned about job opportunities.

He said people are concerned because they want their children to grow up in Waterville, have opportunity and continue to live in the city.

While manufacturing has decreased, the areas of finance, health care, insurance, consulting and legal services have grown significantly, according to Levesque. He cited as one of his priorities identifying desirable technology service sector companies and finding ways to get them to the city.

Amy Calder — 861-9247

acalder@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @AmyCalder17

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