2009 Boston mayoral election

The 2009 Boston mayoral election occurred on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, between incumbent Mayor of Boston Thomas Menino, and Michael F. Flaherty, member of the Boston City Council and former Council president. Menino was re-elected to a fifth term, the first mayor to do so in Boston history. A nonpartisan municipal preliminary election was held on September 22, 2009, where Flaherty and Menino advanced to the general election.

2009 Boston mayoral election

← 2005 November 3, 2009 2013 →

Candidate Thomas Menino Michael F. Flaherty Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Popular vote 63,123 46,768 Percentage 57.27% 42.43%

Ward results Precinct results Menino:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Flaherty:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Tie:     40–50%

Mayor before election Thomas Menino Elected mayor Thomas Menino

31% of registered voters turned out to vote in the election.^[1][2]

Campaign

After the preliminary election, Flaherty and fellow-Councillor Sam Yoon, who had finished third, declared they had formed a ticket. If Flaherty were victorious, he vowed to appoint Yoon deputy mayor, a position that had not existed in Boston since the administration of Kevin White, who left office in 1984.^[3] Details of the position, including salary, were never finalized.

Candidates

Candidates who advanced to general election

Candidate	Experience	Announced	Ref
The following candidates advanced to the general election held on November 3			[4]
Michael F. Flaherty	Boston city councilor at-large since 2000 Former president of the Boston City Council (2002–2006)	January 25, 2009	[5]
Thomas Menino	Incumbent mayor of Boston since 1993	April 22, 2009	[6]

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			[4]
Kevin McCrea	Businessman 2005 Boston City Council candidate	January 23, 2009	[7]
Sam Yoon	Boston city councilor at-large since 2006	March 3, 2009	[8]

Primary election

Endorsements

Michael F. Flaherty

Labor unions

• International Association of Fire Fighters^[9]

Newspapers and publications

• The Boston Globe (Co-endorsement with Menino)^[10]

Thomas Menino

Labor unions

• 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East^[11]
• International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103^[11]
• Service Employees International Union Local 615^[11]
• UNITE HERE Local 26^[11]

Organizations

• MassEquality^[12]

Newspapers and publications

• The Boston Globe (Co-endorsement with Flaherty)^[10]

Sam Yoon

State officials

• Mel King, former state representative for the 9th Suffolk District; Candidate for Mayor in 1983^[13]
• Bill Owens, former state senator^[14]

Individuals

• Yul Kwon, reality TV show contestant^[15]

Results

2009 Boston Mayoral preliminary election^[4][16]

Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Menino	41,086	50.52
	Nonpartisan	Michael F. Flaherty	19,480	23.95
	Nonpartisan	Sam Yoon	17,207	21.16
	Nonpartisan	Kevin McCrea	3,350	4.12
	Write-in		199	0.24
Total votes			81,322	100

General election

Campaign

Following the preliminary election, Flaherty immediately began an aggressive campaign, attacking Menino as ineffectual.^[17] Sam Yoon and Michael Flaherty announced that they would run as a ticket in the general election, with Flaherty pledging to appoint Yoon deputy mayor if he won.^[18] Kevin McRea also announced that he would endorse Flaherty.^[19]

Endorsements

Names in bold endorsed after the preliminary election.

Michael F. Flaherty

State officials

• Mel King, former state representative for the 9th Suffolk District; Candidate for Mayor in 1983^[20]

Local officials

• Raymond Flynn, former Mayor of Boston^[20]
• Sam Yoon, Boston City Councillor; former candidate for Mayor^[18]

Labor unions

• International Association of Fire Fighters^[9]

Newspapers and publications

• Boston Phoenix^[21]
• The Daily Free Press^[22]

Thomas Menino

Labor unions

• 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East^[11]
• International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103^[11]
• Service Employees International Union Local 615^[11]
• UNITE HERE Local 26^[11]

Organizations

• MassEquality^[12]

Newspapers and publications

• The Boston Globe^[22]

Results

2009 Boston mayoral general election^[4][23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Menino	63,123	57.27
	Nonpartisan	Michael F. Flaherty	46,768	42.43
	Write-in		331	0.40
Total votes			110,222	100

See also

• List of mayors of Boston, Massachusetts
• 2009 Boston city council election