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Boston City Council elections were held on November 3, 2009. Eight seats (four district representatives and four at-large members) were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 were unopposed. Seven seats (the four at-large members, and districts 1, 7, and 9) had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 22, 2009.
The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms and there is no limit on the number of terms an individual can serve. Boston uses a strong-mayor form of government in which the city council acts as a check against the power of the executive branch, the mayor. The Council is responsible for approving the city budget; monitoring, creating, and abolishing city agencies; making land use decisions; and approving, amending, or rejecting other legislative proposals.
A general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.
A primary election is the process by which voters, either the general public or members of a political party, can indicate their preference for a candidate in an upcoming general election or by-election, thus narrowing the field of candidates.
Councillors John R. Connolly and Stephen J. Murphy were re-elected to their at-large seats. Incumbents Michael F. Flaherty and Sam Yoon did not run for re-election as they were running for Mayor of Boston; their seats were won by Felix G. Arroyo and Ayanna Pressley. Pressley's victory made her first woman of color to be elected to the council in its history. [1]
John R. Connolly is a former at-large Boston city councilor and candidate for mayor of Boston, Massachusetts. He was first elected in November 2007.
Stephen J. Murphy is the Register of Deeds, in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, having received over 158,000 votes in the general election of November 8, 2016, while winning Boston, Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop.
Michael F. Flaherty is an at-large member of the Boston City Council. He is a member of the United States Democratic Party. He was elected Boston City Council Vice President in 2001 and Boston City Council President from 2002 to 2006.
Candidates | Preliminary Election [2] | General Election [3] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
John R. Connolly | 35,182 | 18.08% | 51,362 | 18.35% |
Stephen J. Murphy | 30,365 | 15.61% | 51,008 | 18.22% |
Felix G. Arroyo | 25,859 | 13.29% | 45,144 | 16.13% |
Ayanna Pressley | 16,866 | 8.67% | 41,879 | 14.96% |
Tito Jackson | 12,535 | 6.44% | 30,203 | 10.79% |
Andrew Kenneally | 12,653 | 6.50% | 24,249 | 8.66% |
Tomás González | 10,122 | 5.20% | 18,310 | 6.54% |
Doug Bennett | 10,529 | 5.41% | 16,842 | 6.02% |
Ego Ezedi | 9,260 | 4.76% | ||
Hiep Quoc Nguyen | 7,691 | 3.95% | ||
Sean H. Ryan | 6,665 | 3.43% | ||
Jean-Claude Sanon | 5,386 | 2.77% | ||
Robert Fortes | 5,071 | 2.61% | ||
Bill Trabucco | 3,132 | 1.61% | ||
Scotland Willis | 2,639 | 1.36% |
Councillor Salvatore LaMattina was re-elected.
Candidates | Preliminary Election [4] | General Election [5] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Salvatore LaMattina | 5,599 | 73.37% | 8,111 | 76.58% |
Chris Kulikoski | 1,149 | 15.06% | 2,444 | 23.07% |
Laura Garza | 854 | 11.19% |
Councillor Bill Linehan ran unopposed. [6]
Councillor Maureen Feeney ran unopposed. [7]
Councillor Charles Yancey ran unopposed. [8]
Councillor Robert Consalvo ran unopposed. [9]
Councillor John M. Tobin, Jr. ran unopposed. [10]
In August 2010, Tobin resigned his seat to take a position as Vice President for City and Community Affairs at Northeastern University. [11] The seat was filled via a special election on November 16, 2010, with the preliminary election on October 19, 2010. Matt O'Malley was elected to serve the remainder of Tobin's term, defeating James W. Hennigan III, brother of former council member Maura Hennigan. [12]
Northeastern University (NU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, established in 1898. It is categorized as an R1 institution by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus in the Fenway-Kenmore, Roxbury, South End, and Back Bay neighborhoods of Boston. The university has satellite campuses in Charlotte, North Carolina; Seattle, Washington; and San Jose, California, that exclusively offer graduate degrees. An additional satellite campus opened in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in late 2016. The university's enrollment is approximately 18,000 undergraduate students and 8,000 graduate students.
Matt O'Malley is an American politician who serves as a member of the Boston City Council. He was elected as the District 6 representative in a special election on November 16, 2010, and was re-elected in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. His district includes the neighborhoods of West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain, parts of Roslindale and Roxbury, and the Back of the Hill.
Maura A. Hennigan is an American politician who currently serves as the Clerk Magistrate of Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Superior Court Criminal/Business Division. She is a previous member of the Boston City Council and was a mayoral candidate in 2005. From 1987 to 1993, she was known as Maura Hennigan Casey.
Candidates [12] | Special Prelim. Election [13] | Special Gen. Election [14] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Matt O'Malley | 3830 | 53.16% | 5283 | 59.97% |
James W. Hennigan III | 2197 | 30.50% | 3487 | 39.58% |
Sean H. Ryan | 613 | 8.51% | ||
Kosta Demos | 350 | 4.86% | ||
Chun-Fai Chan | 196 | 2.72% | ||
all others | 18 | 0.25% | 40 | 0.45% |
Councillor Chuck Turner was re-elected.
Candidates | Preliminary Election [15] | General Election [16] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Chuck Turner | 3,648 | 52.57% | 5,521 | 59.83% |
Carlos Henriquez | 1,659 | 23.91% | 3,644 | 39.49% |
Althea Garrison | 995 | 14.34% | ||
Roy Owens | 610 | 8.79% |
On December 1, 2010, Turner was expelled by an 11–1 vote, following his corruption conviction, making him the first councillor to be expelled in the history of the modern Boston City Council. [17] This created a vacancy that needed to be filled by a special election, which took place on March 15, 2011, with the preliminary election on February 15, 2011. Tito Jackson was elected to serve the remainder of Turner's term.
Tito Jackson is an American politician who was a member of the Boston City Council. He represented council District 7, which consists of the Roxbury neighborhood and parts of Dorchester, South End, and Fenway.
Candidates | Special Prelim. Election [18] | Special Gen. Election [19] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Tito Jackson | 1,944 | 67.38% | 2,829 | 81.98% |
Cornell Mills | 271 | 9.39% | 557 | 16.14% |
Daneille Renee Williams | 258 | 8.94% | ||
Althea Garrison | 150 | 5.20% | ||
Natalie Carithers | 96 | 3.33% | ||
Roy Owens | 89 | 3.08% |
Councillor Michael P. Ross was re-elected.
Candidates | General Election [20] | |
---|---|---|
Votes | % | |
Michael P. Ross | 5,331 | 84.10% |
Oscar Brookins | 981 | 15.48% |
Councillor Mark Ciommo was re-elected.
Candidates | Preliminary Election [21] | General Election [22] | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Mark Ciommo | 3,495 | 59.78% | 4,849 | 64.31% |
Alex Selvig | 1,353 | 23.14% | 2,678 | 35.42% |
Abigail Furey | 785 | 13.43% | ||
Benjamin Ian Narodick | 188 | 3.22% |
The Boston mayoral election of 2009 occurred on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, between incumbent Mayor of Boston Thomas Menino, and Michael F. Flaherty, member of the Boston City Council and former Council president. Menino was re-elected to a fifth term, the first mayor to do so in Boston history.
Ayanna Soyini Pressley is an American politician who is the member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 7th congressional district. The district, which was once represented by John F. Kennedy and Tip O'Neill, includes the northern three-fourths of Boston, most of Cambridge, and all of Chelsea and Somerville. She is a Democrat.
Althea Garrison is an independent American politician from Boston, Massachusetts and Boston City Councilor At Large. She was elected as a Republican to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1992 and served one term from 1993 to 1995. Both before and after Garrison's successful bid for office, she has run unsuccessfully in multiple elections for the state legislature and Boston City Council, as a Republican, Democrat, or independent, which has resulted in her being described in the media as a "perennial candidate". Garrison is also known as the first transgender person to be elected to a state legislature in the United States.
The Boston mayoral election of 2005 occurred on Tuesday, November 8, 2005, between incumbent mayor Thomas Menino and City Councilor Maura Hennigan. Menino was re-elected to a fourth term.
The Boston mayoral election of 2013 occurred on Tuesday, November 5, 2013, between state representative Marty Walsh and city councilor John R. Connolly. Walsh was elected to his first term, and was inaugurated on Monday, January 6, 2014.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 8, 2011. Eight seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 1, 5, 6, 8, and 9 were unopposed. Three seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 27, 2011.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 5, 2013. Twelve seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbent in district 3 was unopposed. Eight seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 24, 2013.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 3, 2015. Eight seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 1, 2, 6, 8, and 9 were unopposed. Two seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 8, 2015.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 7, 2017. Nine seats in the Boston City Council were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 3, 4, 5, and 6 were unopposed. Four seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 26, 2017.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 8, 2005. Ten seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 5, 7, and 8 were unopposed. Five seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 27, 2005.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 6, 2007. Eight seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 1, 2, 5, 6, and 8 were unopposed. Two seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 25, 2007.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 5, 1985. Eleven seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 4 and 5 were unopposed. Nine seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 10, 1985.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 3, 1987. Eleven seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 3 and 6 were unopposed. Seven seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 22, 1987.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 7, 1989. Eleven seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents in districts 3 and 5 were unopposed. Nine seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 26, 1989.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 5, 1991. All thirteen seats were contested in the general election, and had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 24, 1991.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 7, 1995. Ten seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents for districts 2, 5, and 8 ran unopposed. Nine seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 19, 1995.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 2, 1999. Eleven seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents for districts 1 and 2 ran unopposed. Ten seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 21, 1999.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 6, 2001. Nine seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents for districts 1, 5, 8, and 9 ran unopposed. Two seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 25, 2001.
Boston City Council elections were held on November 4, 2003. Nine seats were contested in the general election, as the incumbents for districts 2, 3, 5, and 7 ran unopposed. Six seats had also been contested in the preliminary election held on September 23, 2003.