2017 Boston mayoral election
Election in Massachusetts, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Boston mayoral election of 2017 was held on Tuesday, November 7, 2017, to elect the mayor of Boston, Massachusetts. Incumbent Democratic mayor Marty J. Walsh won re-election to a second term, defeating District 7 City Councilor Tito Jackson,[1] and two long-shot candidates, Robert Cappucci and Joseph Wiley.[2][3]
.jpg)
 | ||||||||||||||||
November 7, 2017
| ||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 27.80%  10.05 pp | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||
  Walsh:
50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% 90–100% Jackson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Tie: 40–50% | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
_(a)_(adjusted).jpg)
A non-partisan preliminary election was held on Tuesday, September 26, 2017, with Walsh and Jackson advancing into a November runoff election.[4] In the November election, Walsh secured a landslide victory, winning by a two-to-one margin.[5] A total of 109,034[6] of the city's approximately 392,000 registered voters[7] cast a ballot in the November election. The voter turnout of 27.80%[6] was down ten percentage points from the 2013 mayoral election, which generated more excitement as the first Boston mayoral race in a generation without an incumbent.[7]
Candidates
Candidates who advanced to general election
| Candidate | Experience | Announced | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| The following candidates advanced to the general election held on November 7 | [6] | ||
_(2).jpg) Tito Jackson |
Boston city councilor from district 7 since 2011 | January 12, 2017 |
[8] |
.jpg) Marty Walsh |
Incumbent mayor since 2014 | September 9, 2015.png){kind=logo} |
[9] |
Candidates eliminated in the primary
| Candidate | Experience | Announced | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| The following candidates were eliminated in the primary election and did not advance to the general election | [10] | ||
| Robert Cappucci | Former Boston School Committee member Candidate for mayor in 2013 |
[11] | |
| Joseph Wiley | Insurance worker | [12] | |
Primary election
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Robert Cappucci |
Tito Jackson |
Marty Walsh |
Joseph Wiley |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suffolk University/Boston Globe[13] | June 2017 | 500 RV | ± 4.4% | 4% | 23% | 54% | 1% | 18% |
| Emerson College[14] | September 14–16, 2017 | 529 LV | ± 4.2% | 7% | 24% | 60% | 5% | – |
General election
Endorsements
By October 2017, ten of the 13 Boston City Council members endorsed Walsh for re-election. Ayanna Pressley remained neutral due to her husband being employed by the mayor, and Andrea Campbell declined to comment on her preference.[15]
The editorial boards of both of Boston's major daily newspapers endorsed Walsh, with The Boston Globe editorial board endorsing him for a second time, citing his success in handling housing and the city's vibrancy during his first term.[16] The Boston Herald editorial board also endorsed Walsh, saying the newspaper was wrong not to give their endorsement to Walsh in 2013.[17]
Individuals
- Jonathan Kozol, author and children's advocate[18]
Federal officials
- Ed Markey, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts[19]
- Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts[20]
State officials
- Nick Collins, Massachusetts State Representative[21]
- Kevin Honan, Massachusetts State Representative[22]
Local officials
- Frank Baker, Boston City Councilmember from District 3
- Mark Ciommo, Boston City Councilmember from District 9[22]
- Michael F. Flaherty, Boston City Councilmember at-large and candidate for mayor in 2009[22]
- Annissa Essaibi George, Boston City Council member (at-large)
- Salvatore LaMattina, Boston City Councilmember from District 1
- Bill Linehan, Boston City Councilmember from District 2[21]
- Timothy McCarthy, Boston City Councilmember from District 5)[23]
- Josh Zakim, Boston City Councilmember at-large
Individuals
- Steven Tolman, President of the Massachusetts AFL–CIO[22]
Organizations
Newspapers
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Tito Jackson |
Marty Walsh |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College[14] | September 14–16, 2017 | 529 LV | ± 4.2% | 26% | 55% | 19% |
| WBUR-FM[25] | September 27 – October 1, 2017 | 405 | ± 4.9% | 24% | 60% | 16% |
| Emerson College[26] | October 19–20, 2017 | 532 LV | ± 4.2% | 23% | 61% | 16% |
Results
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Nonpartisan | Marty Walsh (incumbent) | 34,882 | 62.52 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tito Jackson | 16,216 | 29.07 | |
| Nonpartisan | Robert Cappucci | 3,736 | 6.70 | |
| Nonpartisan | Joseph Wiley | 529 | 0.95 | |
| Write-in | 428 | 0.77 | ||
| Total votes | 55,791 | 100 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Nonpartisan | Marty Walsh (incumbent) | 70,197 | 65.37 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tito Jackson | 36,472 | 33.97 | |
| Write-in | 708 | 0.66 | ||
| Total votes | 107,377 | 100 | ||
