PHILADELPHIA — When Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner announced he was running for a third term in office, he said he was motivated in part by the people who have tried to stop him: the lawmakers who impeached him, the Democratic establishment who opposed him, and the president who has vilified him.

Krasner predicted Philly voters would stick with him. And they did.

On Tuesday, the Democratic incumbent district attorney easily fended off a second challenge by Republican nominee and former Municipal Court Judge Patrick Dugan, winning the general election and securing another four years in office, according to unofficial returns. The Associated Press called the race at 9:16 p.m. Tuesday, shortly after polls closed.

Krasner, 64, barely campaigned since besting Dugan in the May Democratic primary. He criticized Dugan after the former judge accepted the Republican nomination — the result of a successful write-in campaign by the city’s GOP — but otherwise largely ignored his opponent.

Dugan, 65, remained a registered Democrat but had the support of the Republican Party and an endorsement from the Forward Party, the third party founded by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang. But Dugan struggled to fundraise, making it challenging to spread his message that he was a more pragmatic alternative to Krasner.

The win solidifies Krasner’s status as the leader of Philadelphia’s progressive movement who has had the most staying power, and as one of the key voices nationally among reformist prosecutors.

As other district attorneys of his political ilk have stepped down or been removed in recent years, Krasner has survived, doubling down on his message of wanting to end mass incarceration and weathering opposition from both sides of the political aisle.

Through it all, Krasner has positioned himself as the city’s chief antagonist of President Donald Trump, referring to the Republican administration as “fascist” and vowing to prosecute federal law enforcement agents if he believes they break the law in Philadelphia.

He is also now one of the longest-serving district attorneys in modern Philadelphia history. The only other top prosecutor who served more than two terms was Lynne Abraham, the tough-on-crime Democrat who was in the 1990s dubbed “the deadliest DA” because she so frequently sought the death penalty.

Krasner could not be more different.

A former civil rights and criminal defense lawyer, Krasner first ran for district attorney in 2017 as a political outsider and won a seven-way Democratic primary on a promise to bring progressive ideals to an office that was long seen as unfair toward the city’s Black and brown residents. He wants law enforcement to zero in on violent crime and implement programs to divert low-level offenders away from the criminal justice system.

The Rev. Donna Jones, a pastor of Cookman Beloved Community Baptist Church, said she believes Krasner’s relationship with the community and grassroots organizers helped propel him toward a third term.

“Larry’s experience as a community organizer has been one of his greatest strengths,” said Jones, who facilitates restorative justice work. “I can’t even say the man is particularly approachable. But he’s present.”

She added: “I don’t know if we can expect more from a politician with that level of authenticity. He is who he is. We know he is fierce. And we know where he stands.”