The man who would be Seattle’s first Asian-American mayor has claimed this is “history in the making” as he surged to a 30 per cent lead over his rival.

       Bruce Harrell, 64, a former president of the city council and whose mother, originally from Japan, was interned during the Second World War, appeared before supporters as early results placed him more than 30 points head of Lorena González.

       “Standing with my family by my side…I just want to say we’re going to bring Seattle back,” he said.

       Initial results from the contest put Mr Harrell on 65 per cent, with 44-year-old Ms Gonzalez on 35 per cent.

       Mr Harrell had pitched himself as someone who could build a consensus to lead a frequently divided city.

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       Ms Gonzalez backed a series of more progressive measures, and in particular said she would not permit the sweep of homeless encampments.

       The city, which has some of the highest rent in the country, has a pressing homelessness crisis.

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       Both candidates said addressing the problem was a priority for them, though they differed on how they would do so.

       In another closely-watched race in the city, Republican Ann Davison held a strong 17 percentage point lead in the contest for Seattle City Attorney. Her opponent, Democrat Nicole Thomas-Kennedy, had last year spoken of abolishing the police.

       Reports suggested the result of the mayor’s race in particular may not be known for some days, and that Ms Gonzalez had gained ground the longer the count went on during the primary election contest in August, which featured 15 candidates.

       If Mr Harrell does win, he will be one of three Asian-Americans winning mayoral battles this week. In Cincinnati, Aftab Pureval, the son of a Tibetan mother and Indian father, was elected mayor.

       In Boston, voters picked their their first woman, and an Asian-American, to be mayor, when Michelle Wu won the race.