The ballot for Boston's City Council general election will feature more female candidates than ever before, with at least 13 women and 8 men vying for 13 seats on a panel that had only one female member as recently as 2013.
Crowded races for open district and At-Large seats did not lead to crowds at Boston's polls Tuesday, with voter turnout failing to match the enthusiasm of over three dozen candidates.
At-Large Councilor Michelle Wu captured the most votes, with each of her fellow council incumbents making the ballot for the Nov. 5 general election. Wu received 19.4 percent of the at-large vote, putting considerable distance between her and second place finisher Annissa Essaibi George's 13.85 percent and third place Michael Flaherty's 13.68 percent.
Of the 402,300 voters in Boston, 44,972 cast ballots in Tuesday's preliminary election, roughly 11.17 percent. Wu told WGBH News that "turnout was relatively low today, but the excitement at the polls was really high."
"That there was so much interest and an amazing, diverse, talented field of candidates putting their hat in the ring, is a victory for the city," Wu said.
"You have all this momentum that makes you think there's excitement in politics and then you have people that stay home. It's really very discouraging," said UMass Boston political science professor Maurice Cunningham. "These folks are having a real impact and yet the excitement around the electorate is nowhere to be found."
Turnout was higher in Hyde Park and Roslindale, where a competitive race for an open district seat will see a general election showdown between Ricardo Arroyo, sion of an influential political family, and Maria Esdale Farrell, a former aide to out-going Councilor Timothy McCarthy. Arroyo's 29.6 percent finish versus Farrell's 24 percent is another sign that the suburban district may be moving away from more traditional white politicians in favor of progressive and diverse candidates.
Wu's strong finish will likely fuel speculation that she'll be positioned to mount a challenge to Mayor Marty Walsh in two years.
"She can move an agenda. A councilor that can begin to move public policy and gain attention for favored public policy," Cunningham said of Wu.
In the Back Bay, the only Republican on the ballot, Jennifer Nassour, won a spot in November's final against housing advocate Kenzie Bok. Bok took over half the votes in the five-way race, with Nassour receiving 18.4 percent.
Turnout was also higher than usual in Allston-Brighton, where physical therapist Liz Breadon and State House aide Craig Cashman will face off to succeed retiring Councilor Mark Ciommo. Cashman receive 25.4 percent of the vote to Breadon's 23.6 percent.
"What we've seen out of the Council the last few years is they can make it relevant, where it used to be a bunch of pothole-fixers and guys who could get a summer job for a teenager," Cunningham said.
Correction: This story has been updated to correctly spell Ricardo Arroyo's first name.
