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Your guide to voting in the 2025 Boston general election
Congratulations, you made it through Boston's preliminary election, which whittled the fields down in some of the competitive races in town.
"Whittle" may be too wan a word in the case of the mayoral race: Incumbent Michelle Wu blew out her challengers, including the well-financed Josh Kraft, son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and head of the family's charitable foundation. Kraft dropped out days after the prelim, and neither of the other two candidates — community activist Domingos DaRosa and former School Committee member Robert Cappucci — mustered enough votes to make the November ballot.
While the city's marquee race isn't really a race anymore, there are lively contests for Boston City Council. And there are some civic to-dos for voters if they want to have a say in who fills those seats.
Here are the key dates and details to vote in Boston's general election, including a little detail on the names you'll see listed on the ballot.
🗓️ Key dates
- Saturday, Oct. 25: Deadline to register to vote.
- Tuesday, Oct. 28: Deadline to request a mail-in ballot.
- Oct. 25-31: Early voting period.
- Tuesday, Nov. 4: Election Day.
✅ How to vote
📋 Eligibility
In order to cast your ballot you have to be a few things:
- A U.S. citizen
- A resident of Boston
- At least 18 years old before Election Day
- Registered to vote
✏️Register
You have until Oct. 25 at 5 p.m. to register in person at the election office in City Hall (Room 241), or until 11:59 p.m. to register online. You can also register using the good ol' United States Postal Service, but you have to make sure your envelope is postmarked by Oct. 25. Download the registration form here to get started.
You may already be registered. Check your voter status online here.
⌚Vote early
In-person early voting takes place Oct. 25-31 for the general election. Unlike Election Day, however, you don't have a prescribed polling location. Instead, use this map from the city to find the early voting location that works best for you.
📬 Vote by mail
You have until 5 p.m. on Oct. 28 to request a mail-in ballot. You can send in your application online, by email (absenteevoter@boston.gov) or via snail mail. Don't forget to sign it.
The mail-in voting process is managed by the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth's office, which mails an application to all voters. If yours has gone missing, you can find the application form here.
After you receive your mail-in ballot in the post, fill it out and consider the optimal way for you to return it:
- Deliver it in person during business hours at the Election Department at City Hall, room 241, on or before Election Day.
- Put it in one of the city's secure election drop boxes on or before Election Day at 8 p.m. There's one outside the main entrance at City Hall, and others are sprinkled throughout the city. Here's a map to help you find one.
- Mail it. Do so swiftly. Your ballot must reach the election office before 8 p.m. on Election Day. Postage is paid on your ballot envelope, and the mailing address is:
Boston Election Department
One City Hall Square Room 241
Boston MA 02201
You can track your ballot using this link. (That link also lets you keep tabs on your vote-by-mail application.)
And if you miss the deadline or forget to turn in your mail-in ballot, don't worry: You can still vote in person on Election Day. (Please note: You cannot drop off your mail-in ballot at the polls on Election Day.)
🗳️ Vote on Election Day
If all of the above feels too new or complicated for you, there's always the familiar comfort of voting in person on Election Day.
You can find your polling location here. Doors open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
👥 Who's running
With the mayoral contest all but done and dusted, attention this year is now focused on two Boston City Council races.
In the at-large council race, the four incumbents face a strong challenge from former district Councilor Frank Baker.
And in incumbent-less District 7, the two candidates finished neck and neck in the preliminary election to replace Tania Fernandes Anderson, who was convicted on federal public corruption charges and sentenced to prison.
At-large council contest
Ruthzee Louijeune (incumbent)
- The Hyde Park resident is a Harvard Law School alumna who previously worked as an attorney in housing court. She says that work has been key in informing her policy priorities.
- Now in her second-term as an at-large councilor, she’s the first Haitian American member of the body. She was unanimously voted city council president by her peers in 2024.
Julia Mejia (incumbent)
- She’s a former community organizer who became the first Afro-Latina elected to the council in 2019, winning her first term with a single vote. The Dorchester resident is now vying for a fourth term.
- The at-large councilor originally from the Dominican Republic often talks about being raised by a single, undocumented mother in Boston, and later becoming a single mother herself.
Erin Murphy (incumbent)
- The Dorchester native worked as a Boston Public Schools teacher for more than 20 years before becoming a city councilor at-large. She says that work often shapes her policy priorities around education.
- The two-term councilor is often at odds with the more progressive members of the chamber over policy, particularly on issues surrounding drug abuse, crime and safety in the "Mass. and Cass" area of the South End.
Henry Santana (incumbent)
- The 30-year-old Dominican immigrant grew up in Boston public housing and is serving his first term on the council.
- Previously, the at-large representative from Mission Hill directed the city’s Office of Civic Organizing and has made support for the city’s youth and LGBTQIA+ community a priority.
Frank Baker
- The Dorchester native, who worked at the City Hall print shop for 25 years, previously served as a district councilor for six terms.
- The self-proclaimed "lunch-bucket Democrat" — who leans more conservative than his council peers — is trying to make his return, saying he wants to bring “balance” to the council.
Marvin Mathelier
- This challenger for an at-large seat is a small business owner, father of three and marine reservist who saw combat in Afghanistan. He lives in Egleston Square.
- If elected, he says he’d prioritize getting more affordable rental units built and expand first-time homebuyer programs by taxing major developers.
Will Onuoha
- Raised in Mission Hill, Onuoha has worked several roles at city hall under the leadership of Boston’s last four mayors. Most recently, he’s worked as assistant general counsel and director of health and safety for the Boston Water and Sewer Commission.
- The former director of the city’s Fair Housing Commission most notably strays from other candidates with his sharp criticisms of rent control.
Alexandra Valdez
- The Hyde Park resident has most recently served as director of the city’s Office of Cultural Affairs. She's earned Mayor Michelle Wu’s support in her first run for city-council at-large.
- Valdez said education is her top priority, specifically bolstering early education and bilingual programs in Boston’s public schools.
District 7 (Most of Roxbury, parts of Mission Hill)
Said Ahmed
- Ahmed, who immigrated to Roxbury from Somalia when he was 12 years old, is a former track star who ran professionally under a Nike sponsorship deal.
- The father of five, known to many as “Coach,” later founded a free cross country program and has worked in Boston public schools, most recently as an attendance officer. Last year, he ran unsuccessfully for state representative.
Rev. Miniard Culpepper
- The lifelong resident of District 7 has served as a senior pastor of Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church for over 21 years.
- The attorney and former federal housing official previously fought successfully for new civil rights protections for Bostonians, leading a discrimination lawsuit against the Boston Housing Authority.
Beyond the big two contests, there are several other races for Boston City Council. The incumbent in each of these match-ups won the primary vote by a wide margin.
District 1 (East Boston, Charlestown, the North End and parts of downtown)
- Andretti Mcduffie-Stanziani
- Gabriela Coletta Zapata (incumbent)
District 2 (South Boston, the Seaport, most of the South End, parts of Downtown)
- Charles Jeffrey Delaney
- Edward Flynn (incumbent)
District 4 (Parts of Dorchester and Mattapan)
- Brian Worrell (incumbent)
- Helen Cameron
District 5 (Hyde Park and parts of Mattapan and Roslindale)
- Winston Pierre
- Enrique Pepén (incumbent)
