After a few hours of sleep, the two final candidates for mayor of Boston went back to work. John Connolly attended a Boston City Council meeting.
It was a warm — if not forced — welcome for Connolly from his fellow city councilors, four of whom he decisively defeated. There were handshakes, a few hugs. And then it was down to business — setting a date to vote on a casino: November 5. The East Boston casino was an issue some skirted on the campaign trail, and the council had brief debate, to which Connolly contributed.
“I support the people of East Boston making a decision about a project that’s going to disproportionately impact them,” Connolly said.
The council voted down Matt O’Malley’s motion for a citywide vote. Afterward, the council adjourned. They all looked tired. Connolly says he was up until 2 a.m., calling the other candidates in the race. He hopes to speak with all 10.
“I’ve reached three or four of them, but have been having conversations with all of them," he said. "I wouldn’t make any secret of it. I would love to earn every candidate’s support. All 10 of those candidates contributed great things to the debate. I’d love to get them on board.”
Connolly says he also spoke to Mayor Tom Menino, who still has yet to endorse a candidate. Connolly announced his candidacy before Menino decided not to run for reelection, so the call was an olive branch.
"I did talk to the mayor last night and I thanked him for saying to the field, ‘I want to hear you have positive campaigns’ because I think it made a real difference," he said. "I think it showed we could run a campaign you don’t see too often anymore in the state, federally. All those candidates showed Boston what a campaign should be.”
Connolly says he respects Marty Walsh and declined to comment on their differences as candidates. But it’s unclear how long these final two mayoral hopefuls will remain polite — in their speech and ads.
