Cranston’s mayor-elect Allan Fung, center, watches vote tallies at the Shriners Hall building in Cranston last night with Marshall Dambrosio, left.

The Providence Journal / Kris Craig

CRANSTON — The pendulum that has swung back and forth between Democratic and Republican mayors for the past decade swung again yesterday, handing Republican Allan W. Fung a resounding victory over Democrat Cindy Fogarty.

Fung, 38, captured 16,475 votes to Fogarty’s 10,023, according to unofficial results, defeating an opponent who had campaigned on her record of fiscal responsibility and advocacy for residents. He will take office in January, becoming Rhode Island’s first Asian-American mayor.

“This is really, really overwhelming,” he said as he greeted more than 200 ecstatic supporters at the Shriners Imperial Room.

Calling his election a “defining moment” for Cranston and the state, Fung said he will work across party lines to solve the city’s fiscal problems and “work to bring integrity and respect to the office of mayor.”

It was a gratifying end to a day in which the Republican candidate traveled to more than 30 polling locations, finally arriving at the Shriners hall shortly after 8 p.m. He huddled upstairs with campaign workers and family members as the results streamed in, heading downstairs to address more than 200 supporters only after all precincts had reported.

With current mayor Michael T. Napolitano not seeking reelection, the race pitted two well-known former City Council members against one another.

They were no strangers. Each served two terms on the council, from 2003 to 2006, when they each ran for mayor. Fung, a corporate lawyer known for his mild temperament, lost to Napolitano by just 79 votes in 2006. Fogarty, more outspoken and sometimes blunt, lost to Napolitano in the 2006 primary.

Democrats portrayed Fung as a pawn of former Republican Mayor Stephen P. Laffey, but he cast himself as a consensus builder and advocate for fiscal accountability.

Fung said finances will be his top priority as he takes over the mayoral reins. For the current fiscal year, he said, the city and School Department could face a deficit of more than $8 million.

“It’s going to take someone with a big, long-term vision,” he said during an interview.

bpoliche@projo.com