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Mayoral election in Boston, Massachusetts (2025) (September 9 nonpartisan primary)
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Special state legislative • Municipal • How to run for office |
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← 2021
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| 2025 Boston elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: May 20, 2025 |
| Primary election: September 9, 2025 General election: November 4, 2025 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2025 |
Incumbent Michelle Wu and Josh Kraft defeated two other candidates in the nonpartisan primary election for mayor of Boston, Massachusetts, on September 9, 2025. On Friday, September 12, Kraft withdrew from the race.[1] The general election is scheduled for November 4, 2025.
Wu was first elected in 2021, when she defeated Annissa Essaibi George 64%-35.6%. The last incumbent mayor to lose a re-election bid was James Michael Curley in 1949. [2][3]
Wu and Kraft led in media attention and campaign fundraising.[4] Robert Cappucci and Domingos DaRosa also ran. While mayoral elections in Boston are nonpartisan, Wu, Kraft, and Cappucci all wrote that they were Democrats on their Organization Statements filed with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance.[5][6][7] DaRosa did not write a partisan affiliation.[8]
Wu was previously a member of the Boston City Council. She also worked for former Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.[9] Wu ran on her record. Her campaign website said, "Since taking office, she has invested more in making housing affordable than any other administration in Boston’s history. In her first full year as mayor, gun violence fell to the lowest level on record—and has continued to fall every year since. She promised a summer job to every BPS student who wanted one—and delivered, and has expanded Universal Pre-K to serve more children and families than ever before."[10] U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D), U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D), and U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D) endorsed Wu.[11]
At the time of the primary, Kraft was the head of Kraft Family Philanthropies, former CEO of the Boys & Girls Club in Boston, former president of the New England Patriots Foundation, and the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.[12][13] Kraft's campaign website said, "I love this city, but I have serious concerns about its future and many issues need attention. Lack of access to housing that regular people can afford, which is forcing many people to leave the city. Boston Public Schools that are failing our kids and families. Poorly planned bike and bus lanes that are changing our neighborhood streets and creating gridlock all across the city. The humanitarian crisis and public safety concerns at Mass and Cass need to be addressed."[14] The International Longshoremen’s Association endorsed Kraft.[15]
On May 15, a coalition of the city's Democratic Ward Committees hosted a candidate forum. Wu, Kraft, and DaRosa all participated.[16][17] During the forum, candidates spoke about housing, public transportation, public safety, the city's fiscal health, and the mayor's role in responding to the policies of the Trump Administration. Click here to watch the forum.
While Wu and Kraft both said they opposed the Trump Administration's immigration policies, they differed on several other issues, including housing, transportation, and the renovation of Boston's White Stadium.
Wu said her administration created more than 11,000 housing units, including 5,400 affordable units, with another 4,000 affordable units in progress, and implemented new affordability requirements.[16] Kraft said he would reverse the Wu administration requirements, which he said were blocking the construction of 26,000 housing units, increase the number of Boston residents who qualify for income-restricted housing units, and create an opt-in rent control plan that would include property tax breaks for participating landlords.[18][3]
Wu said she would prioritize reducing dependence on cars. Wu highlighted her record on public transportation, including working with the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority to eliminate slow zones, as well as increasing ridership with fare-free bus lines, installing speed humps, and using technology to reduce congestion.[10] Kraft said he wouldn't prioritize reducing dependence on cars and instead would focus on fixing roads and sidewalks, as well as temporarily pause bike lane construction to conduct an audit on the efficiency of proposed bike lanes.[19]
Another topic that the candidates differed on was the renovation of Boston's White Stadium. Wu had led the city's effort to renovate the stadium, calling it an investment "into Black and Brown communities, into our students, and into the Boston Public Schools." Wu also promoted an agreement between the city and Boston Legacy FC, a new professional women's soccer team, to share use of the stadium.[20] Kraft criticized the stadium renovation as too expensive, said he would cancel the contract with the soccer team, and create a new plan for the stadium "at a fraction of the cost."[20]
The filing deadline for this election was May 20, 2025.
This article covers the nonpartisan primary. For more information about the general election, click the link below:
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for Mayor of Boston
Incumbent Michelle Wu is running in the general election for Mayor of Boston on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | ||
 | Michelle Wu (Nonpartisan) | |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Josh Kraft (Nonpartisan)
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Boston
Incumbent Michelle Wu and Josh Kraft defeated Domingos DaRosa and Robert Cappucci in the primary for Mayor of Boston on September 9, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michelle Wu (Nonpartisan) | 72.0 | 66,398 |
| ✔ |  | Josh Kraft (Nonpartisan) | 23.1 | 21,324 |
 | Domingos DaRosa (Nonpartisan) | 2.6 | 2,409 | |
 | Robert Cappucci (Nonpartisan) | 2.2 | 2,074 | |
| Total votes: 92,205 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Voting information
What was the voter registration deadline?
- In-person: August 30, 2025 at 5 p.m.
- By mail: Postmarked by August 30, 2025
- Online: August 30, 2025 at 11:59 p.m.
What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?
- Received by 5 p.m. on September 2, 2025
What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?
- In-person: Monday, September 8 at 12 p.m.
- By mail: Received by 8 p.m. on September 9, 2025
Was early voting available to all voters? Yes
What were the early voting start and end dates? August 30, 31, September 2 - 5
Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, was a photo or non-photo ID required? No. Massachusetts does not require voters to present identification (ID) while voting, in most cases. Click here.
When were polls open on Election Day? 7 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Candidate comparison
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Incumbent: Yes
Political Office:
- Mayor of Boston (Assumed office: 2021)
- Boston City Council At-large (2014-2021)
Biography: Wu earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Harvard University in 2007 and a law degree from Harvard Law School in 2012. Before holding public office, she worked as in intern at Boston City Hall for former Mayor Tom Menino.
Show sources
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Boston in 2025.
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Biography: Kraft earned a bachelor's degree from Williams College in 1989 and a master’s in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Kraft was the head of Kraft Family Philanthropies, former CEO of the Boys & Girls Club in Boston, former president of the New England Patriots Foundation, and the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Show sources
Sources: Boston.com, "Mayoral race primer: What to know about the issues that divide Wu and Kraft," April 8, 2025; Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "Josh Kraft on Policy," accessed August 28, 2025; Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "Housing Access & Affordability Plan," accessed August 28, 2025; Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "Josh’s Plan to Improve a Transportation System Stuck in the Past for a City Ready to Move Forward," accessed August 28, 2025; Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "About Josh Kraft," accessed August 28, 2025; NBC Boston, "Your guide to the 2025 Boston mayoral election," August 15, 2025
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Boston in 2025.
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
No candidate in this race completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign ads
Michelle Wu
Ballotpedia did not come across any campaign ads for Michelle Wu while conducting research on this election. If you are aware of any ads that should be included, please email us.
Josh Kraft
View more ads here:
Endorsements
Click the links below to see official endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites for any candidates that make that information available. If you are aware of a website that should be included, please email us.
Election competitiveness
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
We provide results for polls that are included in polling aggregation from FiveThirtyEight and RealClearPolitics, when available. No polls were available for this election. To notify us of polls published in this election, please email us.
Election spending
Campaign finance
Candidates in this election submitted campaign finance reports to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance. Click here to access those reports.
Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[21][22][23]
If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.
Election context
Ballot access requirements
Information on ballot access requirements for candidates can be found here.
Election history
2021
General election
General election for Mayor of Boston
Michelle Wu defeated Annissa Essaibi George in the general election for Mayor of Boston on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michelle Wu (Nonpartisan) | 64.0 | 91,794 |
 | Annissa Essaibi George (Nonpartisan) | 35.6 | 51,125 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 595 | ||
| Total votes: 143,514 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Boston
The following candidates ran in the primary for Mayor of Boston on September 14, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michelle Wu (Nonpartisan) | 33.4 | 36,060 |
| ✔ | | Annissa Essaibi George (Nonpartisan) | 22.5 | 24,268 |
 | Andrea Campbell (Nonpartisan) | 19.7 | 21,299 | |
 | Kim Janey (Nonpartisan) | 19.5 | 21,047 | |
 | John Barros (Nonpartisan) | 3.2 | 3,459 | |
| Robert Cappucci (Nonpartisan) | 1.1 | 1,185 | |
 | Jon Santiago (Nonpartisan) (Unofficially withdrew) | 0.3 | 368 | |
| Richard Spagnuolo (Nonpartisan) | 0.3 | 286 | ||
| Total votes: 107,972 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2017
| Mayor of Boston, General Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Martin Walsh Incumbent |
65.37% | 70,197 |
| Tito Jackson | 33.97% | 36,472 |
| Write-in votes | 0.66% | 708 |
| Total Votes | 107,377 | |
| Source: City of Boston, "Official mayoral election results," accessed November 27, 2017 | ||
| Mayor of Boston, Nonpartisan Primary Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Martin Walsh Incumbent |
62.52% | 34,882 |
| Tito Jackson |
29.07% | 16,216 |
| Robert Cappucci | 6.70% | 3,736 |
| Joseph Wiley | 0.95% | 529 |
| Write-in votes | 0.77% | 428 |
| Total Votes | 55,791 | |
| Source: City of Boston, "Official mayoral primary election results," September 26, 2017 | ||
Mayoral partisanship
Boston has a Democratic mayor. As of September 2025, 66 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 23 are affiliated with the Republican Party, one is affiliated with the Libertarian Party, three are independents, five identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors' affiliations are unknown. Click here for a list of the 100 largest cities' mayors and their partisan affiliations.
Mayoral elections are officially nonpartisan in most of the nation's largest cities. However, many officeholders are affiliated with political parties. Ballotpedia uses one or more of the following sources to identify each officeholder's partisan affiliation: (1) direct communication from the officeholder, (2) current or previous candidacy for partisan office, or (3) identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
Help inform our readers
Take our candidate survey
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Candidates, share endorsements here. Readers, share endorsements you know about here.
About the city
- See also: Boston, Massachusetts
Boston is the capital of Massachusetts. As of 2020, its population was 675,647.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Boston uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body and the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Boston, Massachusetts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Boston | Massachusetts | |
| Population | 675,647 | 7,029,917 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 48 | 7,800 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 52.1% | 76.6% |
| Black/African American | 24.2% | 7.5% |
| Asian | 9.8% | 6.8% |
| Native American | 0.3% | 0.2% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0% |
| Other (single race) | N/A | 4.2% |
| Multiple | 7.2% | 4.8% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 19.5% | 12% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 87.9% | 91.1% |
| College graduation rate | 51.3% | 44.5% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $76,298 | $84,385 |
| Persons below poverty level | 18% | 9.8% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
2025 battleground elections
- See also: Battlegrounds
This is a battleground election. Other 2025 battleground elections include:
- Mayoral election in Helena, Montana (2025)
- Philadelphia District Attorney election, 2025
- Philadelphia District Attorney election, 2025 (May 20 Democratic primary)
See also
| Boston, Massachusetts | Massachusetts | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ WCVB, "Josh Kraft's exit clears path for Mayor Wu's likely reelection in Boston," September 12, 2025
- ↑ CBS News, "Keller: Wu looks to play "Trump card" against Kraft, who has an uphill climb in the polls," July 30, 2025
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Boston.com, "Mayoral race primer: What to know about the issues that divide Wu and Kraft," April 8, 2025
- ↑ Welcome to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Mayoral Depository Year-to-Date Reports," accessed August 26, 2025
- ↑ Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Michelle Wu Candidate Committee Organization Statement," accessed August 28, 2025
- ↑ Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Josh Kraft Candidate Committee Organization Statement," accessed August 28, 2025
- ↑ Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Robert Cappucci Candidate Committee Organization Statement," accessed August 28, 2025
- ↑ Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, "Domingos DaRosa Candidate Committee Organization Statement," accessed August 28, 2025
- ↑ Washington Post, "Michelle Wu makes history as first person of color and woman to be elected Boston mayor," November 3, 2021
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Michelle Wu 2025 campaign website, "Meet Michelle," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ Michelle Wu 2025 campaign website, "Endorsements," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ NBC Boston, "Your guide to the 2025 Boston mayoral election," August 15, 2025
- ↑ Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "About Josh Kraft,' accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, 'Josh Kraft on Policy," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ Boston Herald, "Josh Kraft scores first major endorsement in his bid for Boston mayor," March 19, 2025
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 YouTube, "Boston Democratic Ward Coalition 2025 Mayoral Debate," May 15, 2025
- ↑ Boston.com, "Boston mayoral race: 5 takeaways from the first candidate forum as Wu and Kraft meet onstage," May 19, 2025
- ↑ Josh Kraft 2025 campaign website, "Housing Access & Affordability Plan," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ Josh Kraft, 'Josh’s Plan to Improve a Transportation System Stuck in the Past for a City Ready to Move Forward," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 MassLive, "White Stadium has taken over Boston’s mayoral race. Here’s what the candidates have to say," August 18, 2025
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," December 12, 2021
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