Menino, Flaherty finish on top in preliminary Boston mayoral race

    Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and City Councilor-at-Large Michael Flaherty Jr. knocked out two other contenders in Boston's preliminary mayoral race on Tuesday, with Menino grabbing more than 50 percent of the vote.
    Menino took 50.5 percent of ballots cast, more than twice the number of votes in Flaherty's favor. With 24 percent, Flaherty narrowly beat out City Councilor-at-Large Sam Yoon and real estate developer Kevin McCrea, who received 21 percent and 4 percent, respectively.
    The two winners have now turned their attention to the Nov. 3 election, with Menino seeking to extend his 16-year-long mayoral career by another four-year term. The Boston native is the longest-serving mayor in the city's history.
    "We're going to engage in a positive campaign about the future of the city," Menino said Tuesday night, The Boston Globe reported. "Come join us. Together, we will continue to move Boston forward."
    Flaherty has advocated refocusing Boston politics in light of a changing population.
    "It's time for us. It's time for each and every one of you in your neighborhoods. It's time for you to put that mayor behind the empty desk," Flaherty told supporters Tuesday, according to WBUR.
    Turnout in the preliminary election, at 23 percent, was higher than expected.
    The public is now waiting to see if Yoon and McCrea will announce endorsements as the six-week race gets underway.