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Election roundup: Looks like no Irish-American candidates for mayor this year; Wu gets a high-flying endorsement

This fall's election could mean a historic first: The election of Boston's first person of color as mayor. It could also be one of the few elections in more than a century without a single Irish-American candidate on the ballot, now that at-large Councilor Michael Flaherty is busy collecting signatures for a re-election bid and state Sen. Nick Collins says he's not running for City Hall.

Technically, the last time Bostonians had a mayoral ballot with no Irish-American candidates was 1997, when nobody dared take on Tom Menino. But before that, you have to go back to 1897, when Josiah Quincy defeated Edwin Upton Curtis to become mayor (in a rematch of their 1895 race, back when mayors had to run every two years). In 1899, Thomas Hart beat Patrick Collins (who two years later would defeat Hart, becoming the second Irish-American mayor, after Hugh O'Brien, who became Boston's first Irish and first Catholic mayor in the 1880s).

The Wu campaign reports she'll be endorsed tomorrow by Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants. The campaign reports it collected 3,000 signatures (which is the number required to get on the ballot, although of course they'll collect more just in case of challenges). They fanned out across the city, including to some places where you don't normally expect to see petition gatherers, like in the evening outside DeNo's Pizza in West Roxbury.

State Rep. Dan Ryan of Charlestown, meanwhile, has endorsed fellow state Rep. Jon Santiago in his bid to become the next mayor. Santiago also has the backing of state Reps. Aaron Michlewitz, Mike Moran, Kevin Honan and Ed Coppinger.

Jon Spillane, running for an at-large seat on the City Council, says he'll be spending several thousand dollars on online advertising over the next few weeks.

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Comments

Michelle Wu & her army of vols really blew it out of the water. This strong showing is reminiscent of Walsh campaign of 2013.

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If an corrupt insider like Moran is on your side, you are absolutely not in this for the people of Boston.

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