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Boston City Council meeting starting! Expecting vote on the home-rule petition to override the special election. Background: https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/01/29/boston-city-council-moves-toward-overriding-special-election/
The council now milling its way through the 31 appointments the mayor filed for this week. He's filed way more in these three meetings before his presumed upcoming departure than he normally does, as I wrote yesterday: https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/02/02/marty-walsh-filling-boston-boards-with-appointees-on-way-out/
These ones from today don't require council action — they're just notices by the mayor that it's happening. Council puts them on file and moves on.
Arright, it's time for discussion on the special election home rule petition. City Councilor Lydia Edwards, the govt ops committee chair, recommends passage. She said the council should consider this a "victory" that it was able to move on this so quickly.
So as a home-rule petition, this would need: passage by the council, the signature of the mayor (council can't override a veto), passage by both houses of the Legislature and the signature of the governor.
Walsh hasn't said whether he'll sign it. Baker has said he'd pretty much sign whatever as long as everyone passed it. Several members of the Boston delegation in the Legislature have strongly backed the petition.
City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo, the sponsor of the petition, says holding the special election would be a "serious threat to the health of our residents"
City Councilor Frank Baker takes issue with how this process has gone. He says he doesn't like that the internal legal memo about conflicts of interest was "leaked" to the Globe, the Bay State Banner and me. Here's what he's talking about: https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/01/23/legal-squabble-over-conflicts-of-interest-shakes-up-boston-mayoral-race/
The city council passes the petition to override a Boston special mayoral election this year unanimously, 12-0. The measure now heads to Mayor Marty Walsh's desk.
City Councilor Annissa Essaibi-George, one of the three current mayoral candidates on the council, abstained.
Walsh's office says the mayor "looks forward to reviewing the final language passed today by the Boston City Council."
