Despite its progress, there will be disappointment among supporters of incumbent Mayor Kim Janey and City Councilwoman Andrea Campbell, who saw in this campaign Boston’s opportunity to elect its first black mayor. Janey took over the role temporarily after former mayor Marty Walsh left office earlier this year to join the administration of President Joe Biden, but, like Campbell, has been excluded from the general election.
As of Wednesday morning, Wu has a strong lead with more than 33% of the vote, while George follows with about 22%. The winner in November will have a full four-year term.
The only man of the highest level, John Barros, the head of economic development of the city under Walsh, was considered a heavy substate. It lags far behind the other top candidates.
“It has been an honor to be a part of this historic field,” Wu told reporters Wednesday morning. “Over the last year, we’ve seen an amazing conversation in every neighborhood, in every community, so I’m humbled to be a part of that moment in Boston and I’m very excited to make sure we keep working, we keep the energy to go out to all the voters, knock on doors and talk about what is possible in this city ”.
On Tuesday night, Essaibi George –before the call for the race, but with results in his favor–, projected confidence as he addressed the fans.
“Bostonians deserve results, real change, and real progress,” he said, after praising the “sisters in service” who became rivals to his campaign. “I will be the teacher and the mother and the mayor to get it.”
“The race for second place will not only be determined by the undecided voters and their respective efforts to get the votes of the candidates, but also the soft Wu voters who will be able to choose to vote for their second option to control selection of the two finalists,” he said. write David Paleologos, director of the Center for Policy Research at the University of Suffolk, with the publication of the survey.
This poll was conducted ahead of last week’s consecutive nights of debate, two mostly tame issues after weeks of intensifying clashes, mostly between Campbell and Janey. But ultimately, it seems that Essaibi George benefited most from it, as he successfully traced the moderate lane with a more suitable platform for the police. Others, such as Wu and Campbell, are pushing for deeper structural changes in the department. Meanwhile, Essaibi George won the support of former Boston Police Commissioner William Gross, the first black man to hold the job.
Janey, who as a child participated in the city’s school bus program, an initiative designed to integrate Boston schools that had a fierce reaction in some predominantly white neighborhoods, took office in March after Walsh’s confirmation. in Biden’s cabinet as labor secretary. In April, he announced that he would run for a full period.
“Thinking we would have a black mayor in my life, even though we had a black president, still felt out of reach,” Janey told CNN in April. “That we have one and that it’s actually me is kind of amazing.”
Turnout tends to be low in the preliminary election, which gave more uncertainty to the race as it entered its final days. Some agents believed the new no-excuse mail voting option from the state could lead to a slight rise in the numbers, but early indications on Tuesday night suggest the wave never materialized.
Although Walsh did not support the preliminary phase, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the state’s most high-profile Democratic representative, is betting on Wu, one of her former students at Harvard Law School. Wu volunteered for the presidency of the Warren Senate in 2012 and was first elected to the city council a year later.
“Michelle has always been a fighter, like one of my students, as a Boston City Councilwoman and now as a mayoral candidate,” Warren said in a statement announcing her support in January. “She is a tireless advocate for families and communities that feel invisible and unheard of.”
The Sunrise Movement in Boston also supports Wu, along with other leading environmental groups and unions, including Teamsters Local 25 and United Auto Workers Region 9A. But the race for job support has largely split. AFSCME Council 93, along with the fire union and IBEW Local 2222, supported Essaibi George, while SEIU Local 888 and SEIU 32BJ supported Janey.
“She radiates a sense of urgency, a palpable hunger to meet Boston’s toughest and most political challenges: its unequal schools and a law enforcement system that has lost the trust of too many residents,” the board wrote. . “This drive, coupled with her nuanced thinking about what can make the city more vibrant and equitable, is what sets her apart from her opponents in this year’s mayoral election.”