Ten term U.S. Congressman Michael Capuano of the 7th Congressional District was unseated during last Tuesday night’s primary by Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley in perhaps one of the biggest political upsets in recent memory.
Pressley finished election night with 59,815 votes to Capuano’s 42,252 votes in the district where he has served for nearly two decades.
Capuano, poised for a leadership role in the U.S. House if Democrats are able to secure a majority after midterms, ended the night in Boston with only 36 percent of the vote.
Pressley’s impressive vote of 63 percent of the ballots cast on Tuesday, secured her party’s nomination. With no Republican challenger in November, Pressley will be heading down to Washington D.C. in January.
“This is a fight for the soul of our party and the future of our democracy,” she told reporters last Tuesday night. “This is a disruptive candidacy, a grassroots coalition. It is broad and diverse and deep. People of every walk of life.”
In Eastie, once a centrist blue collar Democratic stronghold for longtime incumbents like Capuano, it is fast becoming radically more ‘progressive’ by the day. While Capuano is a far left leaning Democrat that consistently delivered for his constituents here and lined up with pretty much all of Pressley’s ideologies there’s a new crop of voters living in the community. The new wave of millenial and progressive voters living in Eastie and how they voted Tuesday night proves no incumbent is safe.
In Eastie Pressley bested Capuano 1,757 votes to 1,617 votes–winning ten out of Eastie’s fourteen precincts. Capuano only won precincts 11 through 14 in Orient Heights, the neighborhood stronghold of rank-in-file middle-of-the-road democratic voters.
Rollins wins Suffolk County D.A.’s race
Rachael Rollins won the election for Suffolk County District Attorney last Tuesday in the five person race to fill the seat left by outgoing D.A. Dan Conley. Rollins defeated Greg Henning, Shannon McAuliffe, Evandro Carvalho and Linda Champion. With her win Rollins will be the first female-candidate of color to hold the position in the history of the Commonwealth.
“I am honored and humbled. But I also need to say – for all of us – that this is earned. As a 47 year old black woman, I have earned this,” she said last Tuesday night. “We have earned this. This is the time for us to claim our power and make good on our promises to make true criminal justice reform for the people in Suffolk County. Reform that is progressive – that decriminalizes poverty, substance use disorder, and mental illness. This is the time to create a system that puts fairness and equity first – as a model for the Commonwealth and the nation.”
In Boston, Rollins received just over 40 percent of the vote followed by Henning who finished the night with 22 percent of the vote. Carvalho finished with 17 percent followed by McAuliffe who got 10 percent and Champion who ended the night with 9 percent.
In Eastie, Rollins received 1,016 votes. Like Pressley, Rollins won ten of the fourteen Eastie precincts with Henning finishing second but only winning four out of the fourteen Eastie precincts. Henning was followed by Carvalho, McAuliffe and Champion.
The district in addition to Boston also includes Winthrop, Chelsea and Revere.
Galvin wins over Zakim
The political trend of change in Boston did not translate statewide Tuesday night with incumbent Secretary of State William Galvin beating challenger and Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim in the Secretary of State race.
Statewide Galvin received 68 percent of the vote to Zakim’s 32 percent.
In Boston Galvin received 57 percent of the vote to Zakim’s 42 percent.
Interestingly enough Galvin won Eastie with 1,849 votes to Zakim’s 1,267. Galvin won ten of the fourteen precincts here. Galvin and Zakim tied in Precincts 1 and 2 and Zakim took only Precincts 3 and 6.
Murphy wins over Forde
Incumbent Suffolk County Register of Deeds Stephen Murphy beat challenger Katherine Forde Tuesday night.
In Suffolk County, which includes Boston, Winthrop, Chelsea and Revere, Murphy won 53 percent of the vote to Forde’s 47 percent.
Citywide the former At-Large Boston City Councilor received 52 percent of the vote to Forde’s 42 percent.
In Eastie Murphy held onto a commanding lead over Forde and received 1,670 votes to Forde’s 1,176 votes. Murphy won eleven out of the fourteen precincts in Eastie.