1871 Boston mayoral election

December 4, 1871^[1]


Candidate	William Gaston	Newton Talbot
Party	Democratic (also Labor-Reformers and Citizens')	Republican
Popular vote	9,838	6,231
Percentage	61.19%	38.76%

Mayor before election

William Gaston
Democratic

Elected mayor

William Gaston
Democratic

Federal government

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State government

Governor
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State House
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Governor's Council
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Ballot measures
1980: Proposition 2½ 2002: English Language Education in Public Schools 2006: 2008 Greyhound Protection Sensible Marijuana Policy State Income Tax Repeal 2010: No Sales Tax for Alcohol Sales Tax Relief Comprehensive Permits and Regional Planning 2012: Right to Repair Death with Dignity Medical Marijuana 2014: Automatic Gas Tax Increase Repeal Expansion of Bottle Deposits Casino Repeal Paid Sick Days 2016: Expand Slot Machine Gaming Charter School Expansion Farm Animal Confinement Legalization, Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana 2018: Gender Identity Anti-Discrimination 2020: pending

Boston

Mayor
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City council
1977 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023

Springfield

The Boston mayoral election of 1871 saw the reelection of incumbent Democrat William Gaston, who defeated Republican nominee Newton Talbot.

Nominations

Democratic nomination

Incumbent Democratic Party mayor William Gaston was re-nominated by his party.^[2] He also received the nominations of the city's Labor-Reformers and Citizens' parties.^[3]

Republican nomination

On November 24, the city's Republican Ward and City Committee nominated Talbot for mayor at its meeting (held in the courtroom of the Second Superior Court).^[4]

Talbot was selected as the nominee nominee through a vote of the nominees. The ballot saw 85 delegates voting, and an individual required 49 votes in order to become the nominee.^[4] The balloting was as follows:

Republican convention balloting^[4]
	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Newton Talbot	74	87.06
Republican	William Gaston (incumbent)	8	9.41
Republican	William Gray	1	1.18
Republican	Robert C. Nichols	1	1.18
Republican	Joseph H. Chadwick	1	1.18

Talbot accepted the Republican nomination.^[4]

A November 28 convention at Mercantile Hall for a citizens ticket unanimously voted to nominate Talbot on that ticket as well.^[5]^[6]

Results

The municipal election results were seen as forgoing typical party alignment in both the race for mayor and the chambers of the City Council.^[7]

1871 Boston mayoral election^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	William Gaston (incumbent)	9,838	61.19
	Republican	Newton Talbot	6,231	38.76
	Others	Scattering	9	0.06
Turnout			16,078

References

^ ^a ^b A Catalogue of the City Councils of Boston, 1822-1908, Roxbury, 1846-1867, Charlestown, 1847-1873 and of the Selectmen of Boston, 1634-1822: Also of Various Other Town and Municipal Officers. City of Boston Printing Department. 1909. pp. 54, 259. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
^ "Chicago Tribune". Newspapers.com. December 12, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Chicago Tribune.
^ "Latest News". Intelligencer Journal. December 7, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Nomination of Hon. Newton Talbot for Mayor". Boston Evening Transcript. November 25, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Municipal Politics". Boston Evening Transcript. November 29, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Citizens' Nomination". Boston Evening Transcript. November 29, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Boston Municipal Election". The Daily Patriot. December 12, 1871. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.