Mayor of Boston facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Mayor of Boston
Seal
Incumbent Michelle Wu since November 16, 2021
Style	His/Her Honor
Member of	Board of Aldermen (1822-1854)
Residence	None official
Seat	Boston City Hall
Nominator	Non-partisan nominating petition
Appointer	Popular vote
Term length	Four years
Constituting instrument	Boston City Charter
Precursor	Boston Board of Selectmen
Formation	Original Post: 1822 Current form: 1909
First holder	John Phillips
Salary	$199,000 (2018)

John Phillips, first mayor of Boston

The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a mayor to a four-year term; there are no term limits. The mayor's office is in Boston City Hall, in Government Center.

The current mayor of Boston is Michelle Wu.

History
- Salary
List
- Mayors serving non-consecutive terms
- Acting mayors
See also

History

In Massachusetts, a town is typically governed by a town meeting, with a board of selectmen handling regular business. Boston was the first community in Massachusetts to receive a city charter, which was granted in 1822. Under the terms of the new charter, the mayor was elected annually. In June 1895, the charter was amended, and the mayor's term was increased to two years.

In 1909, the Republican-controlled state legislature enacted strong-mayor charter changes it hoped would dampen the rising power of Democratic Irish Americans. Adopted by public vote in the November 1909 general election, changes included extending the mayoral term to four years, and making the post formally non-partisan. The reforms did not have the intended effect; the first mayor elected under the new charter was Democrat John F. Fitzgerald ("Honey Fitz"), and every mayor since Republican Malcolm Nichols (1926–1930) has been known to be a Democrat.

In a bid to temper the rising power of James Michael Curley, the state legislature in 1918 passed legislation barring the Mayor of Boston from serving consecutive terms in office; Curley was prevented from running for re-election twice by this law (November 1925 and November 1933). The law was repealed in 1939, after Curley's political career appeared to be in decline.

Another charter change was enacted in 1949, partly in response to Curley's fourth term (1946–1950), during which he served prison time for crimes committed in an earlier term. Changes included adding a preliminary election to narrow the field to two mayoral candidates in advance of the general election, changing the Boston City Council from having 22 members (one from each city ward) to having nine members (elected at-large), and giving the council ability to override some mayoral vetoes. These changes went into effect in 1951, resulting in the first term of John B. Hynes being shortened to two years.

From 1951 through 1991, Boston mayoral elections were held the year before presidential elections (e.g. mayoral election in 1951, presidential election in 1952). Starting in 1993, due to the election held following Raymond Flynn's appointment as United States Ambassador to the Holy See, Boston mayoral elections are held the year following presidential elections (e.g. presidential election in 1992, mayoral election in 1993).

Salary

In June 2018, the Council voted to increase the salary of the mayor to $207,000, effective after the mayoral election of November 2021 (term starting in January 2022); this increased the salary of councillors to $103,500, effective after the council elections of November 2019 (terms starting in January 2020). In October 2022, the Council voted to increase the salary of the mayor to $250,000.

List

There is no official count of Boston's mayors. The City of Boston does not number its mayors and numbering has been inconsistent over time. For example, Thomas Menino was referred to as the 47th mayor at the time he was sworn in, yet his successor, Marty Walsh, was identified as the 54th. The Walsh administration cited Wikipedia for its use of 54. That numbering scheme counted persons who served as elected mayors and counted those who served non-consecutive terms more than once; James Michael Curley served four non-consecutive terms and was counted four times. Kim Janey, who became acting mayor in March 2021, referred to herself as the 55th mayor.

Use of ( ) in the below table denotes non-consecutive terms for a mayor.

#	Mayor		Term		In office		Party
#	Mayor		Start	End	Terms won	Duration	Party
01 1		Phillips, JohnJohn Phillips	May 1, 1822	May 1, 1823	1	01y00m 1 year	Federalist
02 2		Quincy III, JosiahJosiah Quincy III	May 1, 1823	January 5, 1829	6	05y08m 5 years, 8 months	Federalist
03 3		Otis, Harrison G.Harrison G. Otis	January 5, 1829	January 2, 1832	3	03y00m 3 years	Federalist
04 4		Wells, CharlesCharles Wells	January 2, 1832	January 6, 1834	2	02y00m 2 years	Whig
05 5		Lyman, TheodoreTheodore Lyman	January 6, 1834	January 4, 1836	2	02y00m 2 years	Democratic
06 6		Armstrong, Samuel T.Samuel T. Armstrong	January 4, 1836	January 1, 1837	1	01y00m 1 year	Whig
07 7		Eliot, Samuel A.Samuel A. Eliot	January 1, 1837	January 6, 1840	3	03y00m 3 years	Whig
08 8		Chapman, JonathanJonathan Chapman	January 6, 1840	January 2, 1843	3	03y00m 3 years	Whig
09 9		Brimmer, MartinMartin Brimmer	January 2, 1843	January 6, 1845	2	02y00m 2 years	Whig
09a —		Parker, WilliamWilliam Parker	January 6, 1845	February 27, 1845	0 —	00y02m 2 months	Whig
10 10		Davis, Thomas AspinwallThomas Aspinwall Davis	February 27, 1845	November 22, 1845	1	00y09m 9 months	Native American
10a —		Leavitt, BensonBenson Leavitt	November 22, 1845	December 11, 1845	0 —	00y01m 1 month	Whig
11 11		Quincy IV., JosiahJosiah Quincy IV.	December 11, 1845	January 1, 1849	3	03y01m 3 years, 1 month	Whig
12 12		Bigelow, John P.John P. Bigelow	January 1, 1849	January 5, 1852	3	03y00m 3 years	Whig
13 13		Seaver, BenjaminBenjamin Seaver	January 5, 1852	January 2, 1854	2	02y00m 2 years	Whig
14 14		Smith, Jerome V. C.Jerome V. C. Smith	January 2, 1854	January 7, 1856	2	02y00m 2 years	American
15 15		Rice, Alexander H.Alexander H. Rice	January 7, 1856	January 4, 1858	2	02y00m 2 years	Independent
16 16 (1)		Lincoln Jr., Frederic W.Frederic W. Lincoln Jr.	January 4, 1858	January 7, 1861	3	03y00m 3 years	Republican
17 17		Wightman, JosephJoseph Wightman	January 7, 1861	January 5, 1863	2	02y00m 2 years	Democratic
18 18 (2)		Lincoln Jr., Frederic W.Frederic W. Lincoln Jr.	January 5, 1863	January 7, 1867	4	04y00m 4 years	Republican
19 19		Norcross, OtisOtis Norcross	January 7, 1867	January 6, 1868	1	01y00m 1 year	Republican
20 20		Shurtleff, Nathaniel B.Nathaniel B. Shurtleff	January 6, 1868	January 2, 1871	3	03y00m 3 years	Democratic
21 21		Gaston, WilliamWilliam Gaston	January 2, 1871	January 6, 1873	2	02y00m 2 years	Democratic
22 22 (1)		Pierce, Henry L.Henry L. Pierce	January 6, 1873	November 29, 1873	1	00y11m 11 months	None
22a —		Cutter, Leonard R.Leonard R. Cutter	November 29, 1873	January 5, 1874	0 —	00y01m 1 month	Democratic
23 23		Cobb, Samuel C.Samuel C. Cobb	January 5, 1874	January 1, 1877	3	03y00m 3 years	None
24 24 (1)		Prince, Frederick O.Frederick O. Prince	January 1, 1877	January 7, 1878	1	01y00m 1 year	Democratic
25 25 (2)		Pierce, Henry L.Henry L. Pierce	January 7, 1878	January 6, 1879	1	01y00m 1 year	Republican
26 26 (2)		Prince, Frederick O.Frederick O. Prince	January 6, 1879	January 2, 1882	3	03y00m 3 years	Democratic
27 27		Green, Samuel A.Samuel A. Green	January 2, 1882	January 1, 1883	1	01y00m 1 year	Republican
28 28		Palmer, AlbertAlbert Palmer	January 1, 1883	January 7, 1884	1	01y00m 1 year	Democratic
29 29		Martin, Augustus PearlAugustus Pearl Martin	January 7, 1884	January 5, 1885	1	01y00m 1 year	Republican
30 30		O'Brien, HughHugh O'Brien	January 5, 1885	January 7, 1889	4	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
31 31 (1)		Hart, Thomas N.Thomas N. Hart	January 7, 1889	December 31, 1890	2	02y00m 2 years	Republican
32 32		Matthews Jr., NathanNathan Matthews Jr.	January 1, 1891	January 7, 1895	4	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
33 33		Curtis, Edwin UptonEdwin Upton Curtis	January 7, 1895	January 6, 1896	1	01y00m 1 year	Republican
33a	ZZname1 Mayoral term increased to two years.			991		ZZ1
34 34		Quincy, JosiahJosiah Quincy	January 6, 1896	January 1, 1900	2	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
35 35 (2)		Hart, Thomas N.Thomas N. Hart	January 1, 1900	January 6, 1902	1	02y00m 2 years	Republican
36 36		Collins, PatrickPatrick Collins	January 6, 1902	September 13, 1905	2	03y09m 3 years, 9 months	Democratic
36a —		Whelton, Daniel A.Daniel A. Whelton	September 15, 1905	January 1, 1906	0 —	00y03m 3 months	Democratic
37 37 (1)		Fitzgerald, John F.John F. Fitzgerald	January 1, 1906	January 6, 1908	1	02y00m 2 years	Democratic
38 38		Hibbard, George A.George A. Hibbard	January 6, 1908	February 7, 1910	1	02y00m 2 years	Republican
38a	ZZname2 Mayoral term increased to four years.			992		ZZ2
39 39 (2)		Fitzgerald, John F.John F. Fitzgerald	February 7, 1910	February 2, 1914	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
40 40 (1)		Curley, James MichaelJames Michael Curley	February 2, 1914	February 4, 1918	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
41 41		Peters, Andrew J.Andrew J. Peters	February 4, 1918	February 6, 1922	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
42 42 (2)		Curley, James MichaelJames Michael Curley	February 6, 1922	January 4, 1926	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
43 43		Nichols, MalcolmMalcolm Nichols	January 4, 1926	January 6, 1930	1	04y00m 4 years	Republican
44 44 (3)		Curley, James MichaelJames Michael Curley	January 6, 1930	January 1, 1934	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
45 45		Mansfield, FrederickFrederick Mansfield	January 1, 1934	January 3, 1938	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
46 46		Tobin, Maurice J.Maurice J. Tobin	January 3, 1938	January 4, 1945	2	07y00m 7 years	Democratic
46a —		Kerrigan, John E.John E. Kerrigan	January 4, 1945	January 7, 1946	0 —	01y00m 1 year	Democratic
47 47 (4)		Curley, James MichaelJames Michael Curley	January 7, 1946	January 2, 1950	1	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
48 48		Hynes, John B.John B. Hynes	January 2, 1950	January 4, 1960	3	10y00m 10 years	Democratic
49 49		Collins, John F.John F. Collins	January 4, 1960	January 1, 1968	2	08y00m 8 years	Democratic
50 50		White, KevinKevin White	January 1, 1968	January 2, 1984	4	16y00m 16 years	Democratic
51 51		Flynn, RaymondRaymond Flynn	January 2, 1984	July 12, 1993	3	09y06m 9 years, 6 months	Democratic
52 52		Menino, ThomasThomas Menino	July 12, 1993	January 6, 2014	5	20y06m 20 years, 6 months	Democratic
53 53		Walsh, MartyMarty Walsh	January 6, 2014	March 22, 2021	2	07y02m 7 years, 2 months	Democratic
53a —		Janey, KimKim Janey	March 22, 2021	November 16, 2021	—	00y08m 8 months	Democratic
54 54		Wu, MichelleMichelle Wu	November 16, 2021	Incumbent	1	01y02m 1 year, 2 months	Democratic

Mayors serving non-consecutive terms

ZZname3 Mayors serving non-consecutive terms.
#	Mayor	Term		In office		Party
#	Mayor	Start	End	Terms won	Duration	Party
92 M	Lincoln Jr., Frederic W.Frederic W. Lincoln Jr.	January 4, 1858	January 7, 1867	7	07y00m 7 years	Republican
93 M	Pierce, Henry L.Henry L. Pierce	January 6, 1873	January 6, 1879	2	01y11m 1 year, 11 months	Republican
94 M	Prince, Frederick O.Frederick O. Prince	January 1, 1877	January 2, 1882	4	04y00m 4 years	Democratic
95 M	Hart, Thomas N.Thomas N. Hart	January 7, 1889	January 7, 1902	3	04y00m 4 years	Republican
96 M	Fitzgerald, John F.John F. Fitzgerald	January 5, 1906	February 2, 1914	2	06y00m 6 years	Democratic
97 M	Curley, James MichaelJames Michael Curley	February 2, 1914	January 2, 1950	4	16y00m 16 years	Democratic

died in office
acting mayor only
Native American Party and American Party were formal names of the "Know Nothing" movement.

Acting mayors

Thomas Menino, longest-serving mayor of Boston

Boston's city charter stipulates that the City Council President serves as acting mayor whenever the mayor is absent from the city, unable to serve, or the office is vacant. An acting mayor cannot make permanent appointments, and can only perform urgent tasks "not admitting of delay" (which is somewhat open to interpretation).

The following individuals served as acting mayor during a vacancy in the office.

Year	Name	Explanation
1845	William Parker	Served as acting mayor during multiple deadlocked elections.
1845	Benson Leavitt	Served as acting mayor following the death of Thomas A. Davis.
1853	Benjamin L. Allen	Served as acting mayor during multiple deadlocked elections.
1873	Leonard R. Cutter	Served as acting mayor following Henry L. Pierce's election to Congress. Was not a candidate in the 1873 Boston mayoral election.
1905	Daniel A. Whelton	Served as acting mayor following the death of Patrick Collins. Was not a candidate in the 1905 Boston mayoral election.
1945	John E. Kerrigan	Served as acting mayor upon Maurice J. Tobin becoming Governor of Massachusetts. Subsequently lost the 1945 Boston mayoral election.
1947	John B. Hynes	Served as acting mayor during the absence (incarceration) of James M. Curley. Subsequently won the 1949 Boston mayoral election.
1993	Thomas Menino	Served as acting mayor upon Raymond Flynn becoming Ambassador to the Holy See. Subsequently won the 1993 Boston mayoral election.
2021	Kim Janey	Served as acting mayor upon Marty Walsh becoming United States Secretary of Labor. Eliminated in preliminary stage of the 2021 Boston mayoral election.