The 2013 Boston mayoral election occurred on Tuesday, November 5, 2013. Incumbent mayor Thomas Menino had declined to run for re-election to a sixth term. A non-partisan preliminary election was held on Tuesday, September 24, 2013. 12 candidates made the ballot to replace Menino, with state representative Marty Walsh and at-large city councilor John R. Connolly advancing to the general election. Walsh was elected to his first term, defeating Connolly by 3% of the vote, and was inaugurated on Monday, January 6, 2014.
Walsh and Connolly advanced to the general election after outperforming a crowded field in the nonpartisan primary. Other candidates in the primary included Charlotte Golar Richie (former state representative and former city chief of housing & neighborhood development), Daniel F. Conley (Suffolk County district attorney and former district city councilor), Felix G. Arroyo (at-large city councilor), John Barros (civic organizer and former Boston School Committee member), Robert Consalvo (state representative), Michael P. Ross (district city councilor), Bill Walczak (community activist), and Charles Yancey (district city councilor).
Background Incumbent mayor Thomas Menino had held office ever since ascending to the mayoralty following the resignation of Raymond Flynn in 1993. In 2013, Menino opted against seeking what would have been his sixth elected term as mayor. He announced his decision not to seek reelection on March 27, 2013.
Without an incumbent seeking reelection, this made the 2013 election the first open election since 1984, thirty years earlier. Menino did not endorse a candidate.
Candidates Candidates who advanced to general election CandidateExperienceAnnouncedRef The following candidates advanced to the general election held on November 5.John ConnollyBoston city councilor at-large (2008–2014)Marty WalshMassachusetts state representative from the 13th Suffolk district (1997–2014)
Candidates eliminated in the primary CandidateExperienceAnnouncedRef The following candidates were eliminated in the primary election and did not advance to the general election.Felix G. ArroyoBoston city councilor at-large (2010–2014)John BarrosFormer Boston School Committee member (2010–2013)Former executive director of the Dudley Street Neighborhood InitiativeCharles ClemonsCo-owner of TOUCH 106.1FMFormer police officerDaniel F. Conley Suffolk County district attorney (2002–2018)Robert Consalvo Boston city councilor from District 5 (2002–2014)Charlotte Golar Richie Former Massachusetts state representative from the 5th Suffolk district (1995–1999)Michael P. Ross Boston city councilor from District 8 (2000–2013)Former president of the Boston City Council (2009–2010)Bill Walczak Co-founder of the Codman Square Health CenterCommunity organizer David James Wyatt Candidate for Boston City Council in 2007Charles Yancey Boston city councilor from District 4 (1984–2015)
Withdrew/disqualified Frank John Addivinola, Jr., candidate for state senate in 2010 and U.S. House of Representatives in 2012 (ran for councilor-at-large) Lee Buckley Robert Cappucci, former Boston School Committee member and retired Boston Police officer (failed to get enough signatures) Miniard Culpepper, reverend Will Dorcena, activist and at-large candidate for city council in 2011, brother of State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry (failed to get enough signatures) Althea Garrison, former state representative (ran for councilor-at-large) John Laing, businessman (failed to get enough signatures) Divo Rodrigues Monteiro, educator and poet (ran for city council in District 4) Dave Portnoy, founder of Barstool Sports (failed to get enough signatures) Gareth R. Saunders, former city councilor (ran for councilor-at-large) Hassan A. Williams, candidate for state senate in 2010 Christopher G. Womack
Declined Andrea Cabral, Massachusetts secretary of Public Safety and Security and former Suffolk County sheriff Sonia Chang-Díaz, state senator Richard A. Davey, Massachusetts secretary of Transportation John Fish, CEO of Suffolk Construction Company Michael F. Flaherty, former city councillor (ran for city council at-large) Paul Grogan, president of The Boston Foundation Maura Hennigan, Suffolk County criminal courts clerk Russell Holmes, state representative Tito Jackson, city councillor (ran for reelection) Bill Linehan, city councillor (ran for reelection) Stephen Lynch, U.S. representative Ralph Martin, former Suffolk County district attorney Thomas Menino, incumbent mayor of Boston Stephen J. Murphy, president of the Boston City Council (ran for reelection) Matt O'Malley, city councillor (ran for reelection) Ayanna Pressley, city councillor (ran for reelection) James Rooney, executive director of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority Marie St. Fleur, former state representative John M. Tobin, Jr., former city councillor
Primary Campaign Incumbent mayor Tom Menino had served since being elected to the position in 1993, making him the longest-serving mayor in Boston's history. The first candidate to announce a campaign for mayor was at-Large Boston City Councillor John R. Connolly in February 2013, who announced an intent to base his campaign on reforming public education and opposing the influence of the Boston Teachers Union. Connolly's campaign was considered to have little chance of succeeding if Menino decided to run for re-election, as the incumbent was highly popular in the city. On March 28, Menino announced that he would not be seeking re-election, stating that health issues were preventing him from carrying out his tasks as mayor to a satisfactory standard.
Soon after Menino's announcement, a field of candidates began to amass. On April 3, Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley became the second candidate to join the field (after Connolly). The next day, district city councillor Rob Consalvo (a resident of the Hyde Park neighborhood) announced his candidacy. On April 7, activist Bill Walczak (a resident of the Dorchester neighborhood) entered the field. On April 10, state representative Marty Walsh and at-large city councillor Felix G. Arroyo both announced their candidacies.Multiple sources: Several other candidates, including City Councillors Michael P. Ross and Charles Yancey, former state representative Charlotte Golar Richie, and Boston School Committee member John Barros announced campaigns over the following weeks. In total, twelve candidates made the ballot for the preliminary election.
Connolly’s status as the only mayoral candidate to have announced a campaign before Menino declared that he would not run for re-election gave him an advantage in that it had given him more time to build a campaign apparatus and political platform.
Upon his entry into the race Walsh had demonstrated organizational strength by gathering the required signatures to get on the ballot in a single day, which impressed political insiders and showcased the influence of the labor unions who were supporting his candidacy. The advantages enjoyed by the two men led to them being considered the frontrunners for the two spots in the general election in the campaign's early stages.
By mid-September, it was suggested by radio station WBUR-FM that a clear top tier of candidates had arisen in the race, consisting of Connolly, Walsh, Golar Richie, Arroyo and Conley. Golar Richie's campaign was viewed as having gained significant momentum by this stage on the race, helped by her status as the most prominent black and only female candidate in the race.
Debates 2013 Boston mayoral election primary debates Date & time Host Moderator Link ParticipantsKey: Participant Absent Non-invitee Felix G. Arroyo John Barros Charles Clemons Daniel F. Conley John R. Connolly Robert Consalvo Charlotte Golar Richie Michael P. Ross Bill Walczak Marty Walsh David Wyatt Charles Yancey 1 2 3
Endorsements
Polling Graphical summary
Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin oferror FelixArroyo JohnBarros DanielConley JohnConnolly RobertConsalvo Charlotte GolarRichie MichaelRoss BillWalczak MartyWalsh CharlesYancey Other/Undecided Suffolk University/Boston Herald September 12–17, 2013 600 ± 4% 6% 3% 12% 16% 8% 10% 5% 6% 12% 1% 22% Mass Inc September 14–16, 2013 487 ± 4.4% 8% 3% 8% 15% 5% 10% 6% 4% 12% 1% 27% UNH September 5–12, 2013 411 ± 4.8% 6% 6% 10% 15% 6% 10% 5% 4% 10% 3% 27% Suffolk University/Boston Herald July 10–15, 2013 600 ± 4% 4% 1% 9% 12% 8% 5% 5% 2% 11% 3% 40%
Results
General election Campaign Both Connolly and Walsh were regarded as liberal Democrats, with Connolly being perceived as being focused on education and Walsh having the reputation of being the candidate of organised labor. Connolly was considered the frontrunner as the campaign began, as he was more well-known and was considered to have a superior field organisation to Walsh. However, Walsh's campaign was boosted by large spending by labor unions, who were dissatisfied with Connolly due to his staunch support for charter schools. Connolly raised objections to the support that Walsh had received, arguing that it would make him beholden to the unions if he were to win, but he made sure to temper his criticism to avoid alienating labor unions from his campaign completely. Walsh responded to this criticism by arguing that his ties to labor would make him more effective at negotiating contracts and preventing strikes. Walsh's campaign was also boosted by endorsements from his preliminary rivals Golar Richie, Barros and Arroyo.
The relative lack of policy differences between the candidates led to the election largely coming down to a contest between biographies and personalities. Walsh supporters derided Connolly as a "corporate lawyer" while Connolly supporters characterised Walsh as a puppet of organized labor. Connolly's base of support largely came from his home neighborhood of West Roxbury and the relatively affluent communities in Boston's west, while Walsh had support from both the more working-class, culturally conservative areas in South Boston and from left-wing activists who had been invigorated by Elizabeth Warren's successful campaign for U.S. Senate the previous year.
Debates 2013 Boston mayoral general election debates Date & time Host Moderator Link ParticipantsKey: Participant Absent Non-invitee John R. Connolly Marty Walsh 1 2
Endorsements Endorsements in bold endorsed after the primary.
Polling Graphical summary
Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin oferror MartyWalsh JohnConnolly Undecided Suffolk University/Boston Herald October 29–31, 2013 555 ± 4.2% 46% 43% 11% UMass Poll, UMass Amherst October 22–26, 2013 405 ± 5.9% 47% 40% 13% University of New Hampshire October 17–22, 2013 465 ± 4.5% 38% 47% 15% Mass Inc October 19–20, 2013 503 ± 4.4% 39% 41% 20% Sage Systems October 16–17, 2013 375 ± 3.9% 36% 40% 24% UMass Lowell October 2–7, 2013 375 ± 6% 37% 45% 18% S.U./Herald October 2–6, 2013 600 ± 4% 34% 41% 23% Anderson Robbins ^ September 28–30, 2013 800 ± ? 32% 44% 24% S.U./Herald September 12–17, 2013 600 ± 4% 29% 44% 28%
^ Internal poll for John Connolly campaign
With Conley Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin oferror DanielConley JohnConnolly Undecided S.U./Herald September 12–17, 2013 600 ± 4% 29% 36% 35%
With Consalvo Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin oferror JohnConnolly RobertConsalvo Undecided S.U./Herald September 12–17, 2013 600 ± 4% 47% 25% 28%
With Golar Richie Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Margin oferror JohnConnolly Charlotte GolarRichie Undecided Suffolk University/Boston Herald September 12–17, 2013 600 ± 4% 43% 32% 25%
Results
Walsh defeated Connolly by a narrow margin of 3.5%, with Connolly conceding and stating he believed Walsh would be a successful mayor. There were a total of 560 write-in votes, the largest recipient of these being baseball player David Ortiz.
See also