Ruthzee Louijeune and Erin Murphy will join the Boston City Council as its newest at-large councilors, placing third and fourth in a tight citywide race topped by incumbents Michael Flaherty and Julia Mejia.
Attorney Louijeune, a first-time candidate, supports increasing funding for public health services by redirecting public safety tax dollars and boosting homeownership in low income areas. Hailing from Hyde Park and Mattapan, Louijeune will be the first Haitian-American to serve on the council.
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"We're talking about making sure that everybody has access to real quality, affordable housing. We're talking about equity and excellence in every single school and every neighborhood. That's what you deserve, whether you live in Mattapan, Dorchester, Mission Hill or Beacon Hill," Louijeune told supporters at her victory party Tuesday night.
Dorchester's Murphy has been a Boston Public School kindergarten teacher and special education coordinator for over 20 years. Murphy shaped her campaign around BPS, calling for a comprehensive vocational high school for the city, as well as trauma and support training for teachers.
Murphy said she's confident she'll work well on the council and under the new Wu administration.
"As a school teacher, I've worked under many different principals who have many different styles. But as long as we all are in it for the right reason, and I do believe that we're here because we care about the city and moving the city forward," Murphy said after hearing the final tally of votes, which saw her ahead of fifth-place finisher David Halbert by roughly 1,100 votes.
According to unofficial results provided by the city, Flaherty finished with 57,225 votes, or 17.51% of the total. Second-place finisher Mejia received 56,227 votes for 17.21%. Louijeune scored 15.05% of the vote with 49,187 votes. Murphy finished fourth with 39,643 votes, or 12.13%.
At her election-night gathering at the John P. McKeon AmVets hall in Neponset, Murphy said she's been campaigning for two and a half years, since the 2019 election when she placed sixth.
"Not everyone always welcomed me or wanted me there, or didn't always have the same views on all of the issues," Murphy said. "But I made sure that I kept showing up and learning and listening. And so I'm going to definitely be that voice that represents the whole city."
After returns came in, Louijeune celebrated at dbar in the Savin Hill neighborhood and spoke about being a new role model for children of color in the city.
"It's not always true, but it is often true, that you can't be what you can't see. And so I grew up in a Boston that was heavily dominated by a certain type of person as your political representation," Louijeune said.
"It is unfortunate that it's taken this long for there to be a Haitian person elected in Boston City Council," Louijeune went on, "but I'm happy that it's finally here, and it's time for that representation to mean something."
Both new councilors-elect agree that spending millions in federal aid will be a top priority of the next council.
Murphy said one of her priorities will be to make sure the city is spending its allotted federal American Rescue Plan funds, and spending them properly.
"It's here for us. So making sure we're advocating to get it to the people who need it most," Murphy said.
"It's a rare moment to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, on both the federal level and the state level, to be allocating resources to our neighborhoods and to our communities in ways that are pivotal, that really will change the game," Louijeune said.
District 6:
Kendra Hicks will take over the seat now held by the retiring Matt O'Malley to represent West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain in the sixth district.
Hicks, the director of radical philanthropy at the racial and economic advocacy organization Resist, beat former school committee member and education nonprofit worker Mary Tamer 55.41% to 44.25%.
Hicks was almost certainly further to the left than any other candidate on the ballot this year, a point Tamer, a more moderate Democrat, did not hesitate to remind voters through campaign messaging.
A flashpoint late in the race emerged over a campaign flyer Hicks found racist. It came to shape what's become the most racially charged election in the city this cycle. The mailer showed photos of Tamer and Hicks, with Hicks in black and white, and declared that "There are stark differences between candidates for District 6 City Council."
“In 2021, there is no place for such blatantly racist messaging in a campaign hoping to represent as diverse a community as District 6,” Hicks said in a statement at the time.
When asked why he came out to vote at his Jamaica Plain polling place Tuesday, voter John Broussard told GBH News, "'Cause we can’t have Mary Tamer be the D6 councilor."
District 7:
Tania Fernandes Anderson will become the first Muslim and first African immigrant elected to the City Council after defeating perennial candidate Roy Owens for the Roxbury, Dorchester and South End District 7 seat currently held by acting Mayor Kim Janey.
Anderson brings experience as an immigrant, single mother and former homeless person to the council. She works as the executive director of community development organization Bowdoin Geneva Main Streets and has previously been a sexual assault counselor and social worker.
Housing and homelessness are issues close to Anderson's heart. She's campaigned for rent stabilization, new tax incentives to encourage homeownership and increases in mandates for subsidized housing in new real estate developments.
District 4:
In the race to succeed Andrea Campbell in District 4, real estate broker Brian Worrell, 38, defeated former State Representative Evandro Carvalho, 42, 61.6% to 38%.
Worrell made housing the focus of his first-time campaign, with proposals for revamping abandoned properties and developing vacant lots, in addition to traditional positions on housing affordability and home ownership. Worrell supports universal pre-kindergarten for all three- and four-year-olds in Boston, and wants to centralize support services in public schools so students and families have better access to existing programs.
District 3:
In the Dorchester-based District 3, incumbent Frank Baker easily defeated challenger Stephen McBride, a 31-year-old software worker.
"I look forward to continuing the important work in our District and in our city, most importantly solving the ongoing public health crisis at Mass and Cass," Baker wrote in a statement after declaring his "2 to 1 victory" over McBride.
"Thank you to my opponent, Stephen McBride, for participating in the Democratic process. It takes a lot of courage to put your name on the ballot," Baker wrote.
Baker, 53, focused on job development during his sixth campaign for the office he was first elected to in 2011. He has stated that bringing more life science jobs to his district will be a priority, as will housing and the continued development of Columbia Point.
The veteran Dorchester pol has also developed a reputation as the "Dr. No" of the council by often voting against popular measures and challenging his colleagues on their progressive stances on issues like police oversight, freezing rent payments during the pandemic, expanding voter registration and government transparency.
McBride tried to challenge Baker's reputation for defiance and his positions as a more centrist, even old-school, Democrat. But Baker's long incumbency, paired with deep wells of neighborhood goodwill and campaign cash, proved too much for the first-time candidate to overcome.
Elsewhere in the city, incumbent Ricardo Arroyo defeated challenger John White 75.7% to 23.7%.
In Allston-Brighton's District 9, incumbent Liz Breadon beat Michael Bianchi 71.1% to 28%.
