Boston, MA
Boston election ballot mess raises concerns about city’s ability to handle ranked-choice voting
Boston’s failures in last week’s election have prompted concerns around whether its Election Department, now under investigation by the Secretary of State’s office, would be able to handle a “dramatic” shift to a ranked-choice voting system.
Opponents of a Council proposal that seeks to overhaul the city’s election process with a ranked-choice voting system, where voters would rank their favorite candidates, have seized onto last week’s ballot shortages as proof that Boston is not equipped to handle “sweeping changes” to its electoral system.
“Ranked-choice voting is deeply flawed and should be kept far from Boston,” MassGOP spokesman Logan Trupiano said. “Before even considering sweeping changes to our electoral process, Boston must first prove it can manage a basic election.
“Mayor Wu must be held accountable for this complete failure,” Trupiano added. “With the Secretary of State’s office right here in Boston, how could such a blunder happen? Despite 766,200 ballots printed and delivered, polling locations across the city ran out of ballots. It is absolutely unacceptable.”
Secretary of State William Galvin launched an investigation into the Boston Election Department and is considering receivership after a series of Election Day snafus left polling places in multiple neighborhoods short on ballots, reflecting what he described as “incompetence” on the part of city elections officials.
Galvin placed the Boston Election Department under receivership in 2006, after similar ballot shortages hampered that year’s November state election, in which former Gov. Deval Patrick was elected.
The Secretary of State’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Mayor Michelle Wu last week initially blamed the ballot shortages on heavy turnout. Her office later pivoted to saying there was a “miscalculation in formulas to set ballot deliveries for precincts that would be processed ahead of Election Day.”
The city’s election failures came amid a City Council push, led by the body’s President Ruthzee Louijeune, for a switch to ranked-choice voting — a process Boston Election Department officials have already said would create operational challenges, additional costs, and prolong the amount of time it would take to count ballots on election night.
A spokesperson for Mayor Wu said in a statement the “City of Boston Elections Commission will always carry out their charge to administer free and fair elections under the laws that define election procedures in the Commonwealth.”
“We continue to work closely with the Secretary of State’s office and to conduct our internal review to identify needed improvements for the most efficient and effective ways to ensure full access to the ballot,” the Wu spokesperson said.
Gregory Maynard, a political consultant and executive director of Boston Policy Institute, said, however, that the city’s handling of last week’s election “doesn’t bode well for Boston’s version of ranked-choice voting.”
“One of the major advantages of Cambridge, Massachusetts’ version of ranked-choice voting is that it doesn’t require a preliminary election, so the city can focus on just the November Election Day,” Maynard said. “The plan Boston is pursuing still has a preliminary and adds all this complexity to the actual ballot counting in November.”
Paul Craney, executive director of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, said “ranked-choice voting doesn’t deliver on its promises,” and “only elects a winner by eliminating ballots.”
“Even if Boston could hold its elections without controversy, ranked-choice voting is a bad idea,” Craney said.
Larry DiCara, an attorney and former city council president, called ranked-choice voting a “very interesting idea from very well-intentioned people who do not necessarily understand how complicated voting is for a lot of people, and how even more complicated it would be.”
“I think that it’s a great thing for highly intelligent people who can figure it out, and for people, who English is not their first language … I think it’s confusing,” DiCara said. “You’ve got to be careful when you’re running elections because people’s franchise is at stake, and the simpler we make it for people, the better.”
A request for comment from the council president, Louijeune, on whether last week’s election mishaps raised concerns about the Election Department’s ability to handle ranked-choice voting was not returned.
Louijeune put forward the proposal in June as a way to “modernize how we vote and how every vote is heard in our elections.” The Herald reported last month on a similar statewide ballot push that is underway. A prior ballot question was defeated by Massachusetts voters in a 2020 referendum.
Some of her colleagues, however, did not shy away from weighing in.
“After last week’s failure in leadership by the Boston Election Department, it’s obvious Boston is unable to move forward with a dramatic shift to ranked-choice voting,” City Councilor Ed Flynn said. “I’m against a change from the current system to a more complicated and confusing ranked-choice voting.
“We need to refocus our efforts on neighborhood services and the delivery of basic city services, including conducting an effective Election Day operation,” Flynn added. “We also need a dramatic change in leadership at the Election Department, including the implementation of a state receiver, to ensure this failure never takes place again.”
Councilor Erin Murphy, who last week co-wrote a letter to Galvin’s office with Flynn pushing for receivership and co-sponsored a Council hearing order on “voter accessibility and election preparedness” with Louijeune, raised similar doubts.
“We’re a long way from ranked-choice voting being implemented in Boston, and my immediate focus is ensuring that every voter who wants to participate in our elections can do so without barriers,” Murphy said. “Right now, my priority is to address critical issues within our current system before we even consider introducing a major shift like ranked-choice voting, which I don’t believe the Election Department is equipped to handle at this time.”
Boston, MA
Red Sox at Reds preview: Sonny Gray makes his first start for Boston – The Boston Globe
Gray, acquired in a November trade from the St. Louis Cardinals, was one of Boston’s key rotation additions, along with Ranger Suarez, in the offseason. He was 14-8 with a 4.28 ERA in 2025.
“He’s very specific about his work. Every day has a purpose,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Gray. “Two hundred strikeouts, that’s something that we were looking for. The competitor. Every five days, this guy is going to give you everything.”
In his five career appearances against the Reds, Gray is 1-3 with a 4.18 ERA.
“It’s pretty much one of the only things that is continuing to push me, is to get to a World Series, to win a World Series, to pitch in big games,” said Gray. “I love the moment, and I am chasing that moment.”
Here’s the preview:
RED SOX (1-0): TBA
Pitching: RHP Sonny Gray
REDS (0-1): TBA
Pitching: RHP Brady Singer
Time: 4:10 p.m.
TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7
Red Sox vs. Singer: Wilyer Abreu 2-5, Roman Anthony 1-2, Willson Contreras 2-7, Jarren Duran 3-10, Caleb Durbin 0-1, Isiah Kiner-Falefa 6-16, Marcelo Mayer 0-1, Andruw Monasterio 1-4, Carlos Narváez 1-1, Ceddanne Rafaela 1-5, Trevor Story 0-4, Connor Wong 2-8, Masataka Yoshida 2-7
Reds vs. Gray: Will Benson 0-5, Elly De La Cruz 5-11, TJ Friedl 1-8, Ke’Bryan Hayes 4-17, Nathaniel Lowe 2-10, Noelvi Marte 0-5, Matt McLain 2-2, Spencer Steer 4-9, Tyler Stephenson 0-8, Eugenio Suárez 7-13, Jose Trevino 0-2
Stat of the day: Sal Stewart become the first Cincinnati rookie since 1958 to record three hits on Opening Day.
Notes: Cincinnati sends righthander Brady Singer (14-12, 4.03 in 2025) to the mound … With Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo already on the injured list to start the season, Singer is considered one of Cincinnati’s most durable pitchers, leading the Reds with 32 starts last season … Singer has made five career starts against Boston, posting a 2-2 record with a 4.88 ERA over 24 innings … His last appearance against the Red Sox, on July 1 in Boston, ended after just three innings when he allowed two earned runs on three hits.
Cam Kerry can be reached at cam.kerry@globe.com.
Boston, MA
Mayor Robert Van Campen talks about priorities in Everett
Nearly three months since assuming office as mayor of Everett, Massachusetts, Mayor Robert Van Campen isn’t wasting any time.
The former city councilor ousted 18-year incumbent Carlo DeMaria in decisive fashion last November, but even so, issues surrounding his predecessor still linger at City Hall.
A state-led salary audit of DeMaria found $180,000 in overpayment, a finding the former mayor disputes. Van Campen says the city is monitoring ongoing investigations.
“What I’ve conveyed to my partners in government here, locally, is to allow that state process to play itself out, and then we, as a community, will make a decision,” the mayor said. “In addition to that, I recently met with Inspector General Jeff Shapiro, who visited me at City Hall. We had a great conversation about transparency in government, best practices, putting in the right systems to ensure that that type of financial oversight doesn’t happen in the future.”
Beyond the audit, Van Campen is placing emphasis on school overcrowding.
“My objective is to try to implement solutions as quickly as I can,” he said. “Our high school today, which was built for I think 1,650 students, now houses around 2,200.”
The World Cup is creating buzz across Massachusetts, including in Everett, where the Kraft Group is looking to build a soccer stadium.
To alleviate that problem, the mayor is using federal ARPA funds to repair the old Everett High School and seeking out other spaces that could be used in the future.
“Would I like to build out new classroom space for the students of Everett in the next one to two years? Yes, that’s my ideal,” Van Campen said. “But I want to make sure that if we do it on a quick timeline, it’s done in a correct and proper fashion.”
Also in focus for the mayor is a new soccer stadium for the New England Revolution on the shores of the Mystic River.
The Kraft Group, Boston, Everett and the state Legislature have all taken steps to make the project a reality, but Van Campen says there’s still more work to do.
“It’s a transformative project, it’s a breathtaking project,” said Van Campen. “But I’ve been clear with all the stakeholders around that project, and the other larger developments going on down there, that we have to make sure that transit issues are comprehensively addressed, that pedestrian access issues are comprehensively addressed, that all those issues have to be addressed to perfection in order for these projects to succeed.”
Tune in on Sunday, March 29 at 9:30 a.m. for our extended @Issue Sit Down with Van Campen.
Boston, MA
Boston ‘No Kings’ rally expected to draw 100,000; others planned across Mass.
“No Kings” rallies are scheduled in Boston and across Massachusetts on Saturday and are expected to draw large crowds, organizers said.
Organized by the ACLU of Massachusetts, Indivisible Mass Coalition, and Mass 50501, the event is a mass mobilization in protest of the Trump administration.
The No Kings theme was created by the 50501 Movement, a national movement made up of Americans who stand for democracy and against what they call the authoritarian actions of the Trump administration. The name 50501 stands for 50 states, 50 protests, one movement.
“The Trump administration is trying to shred the Constitution; the No Kings movement is an unequivocal statement that we, the people, will not let that happen. This will be the third global No Kings Day, and it’s not just about protesting what’s wrong—it’s about building something better. We intend to show our power, build our power, and power a democracy that advances freedom, equality, justice, and dignity for all,” organizers wrote.
The rally, one of thousands scheduled across the country this weekend, is planned for the Boston Common from 2 to 4 p.m. More than 100,000 people are expected to attend Boston’s rally. Other events are scheduled in Pittsfield, Northampton, Lancaster, Worcester, Framingham, Methuen, Lexington, and towns in southeastern Massachusetts and the Cape. For a map of No Kings events near you, click here.
Speakers include elected officials Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Gov. Maura Healey, Sen. Ed Markey and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, and civic leaders Hessann Farooqi Marcelo Gomes Da Silva, Darlene Lombos, president of the Greater Boston Labor Council, Carol Rose, executive director of ACLU of Massachusetts, Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers of Massachusetts, and others. It will be moderated by Rahsaan Hall, president and CEO of Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts.
There will also be performances by the Dropkick Murphys, Boston Area Brigade of Activist Musicians, BVOCAL Chorus, and Jimmy Tingle.
A previous No Kings rally in October drew massive crowds estimated in the tens of thousands.
NBC10 Boston NBC10 Boston An aerial view of the crowd at Boston’s “No Kings” rally on the Common on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.
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