LIVE UPDATES: Incumbent Ballantyne ousted in 2025 Somerville preliminary election

Editor's Note: This article will be updated with preliminary results as they come in. The symbol * indicates the candidates that will be eliminated from their respective races as of the release of this article. Italics signifies the incumbent candidates.

11:26 p.m.

Unofficial results from all precincts are in: 12,207 ballots were cast, for a voter turnout of 23.37%.

Incumbent Katjana Ballantyne has been knocked out of the mayoral race by challengers Jake Wilson, who received 41.85% of the vote, and William Burnley Jr., who received 33.73%. Ballantyne, who has served the past two terms as mayor, will not advance to the next round. 

As for the city councilor-at-large race, popular incumbent Will Mbah takes the lead, with Ben Wheeler in second place by a difference of 1,120 votes. Wheeler defeats incumbent Kristen Strezo by 763 votes, showcasing the success of his campaign centered on “trying new things” and solving the housing affordability crisis.

Candidates that have been knocked out of the at-large race are Christopher Ryan Spicer, Justin Klekota, Ari Iaccarino and Tuesday N. Thomas, receiving 5%, 4.36%, 3.76% and 2.04% of the vote, respectively. 

Micheal Murray has been knocked out of the City Council Ward 7 race, receiving 296 votes, 148 votes less than second place Wilbert Pineda. Emily E. Hardt leads the race with 1,088 votes, a significant lead. Emily Hardt, a teacher and Somerville public schools parent, ran on a platform focused on making Somerville more affordable, safe and climate resilient. 

For School Committee Ward 3, Kat S. Johnson received 602 votes, narrowly losing to Jessie C. Ratey by only 8 votes. Front runner Michelle Lippens received 657 votes, suggesting a close race. As these are unofficial counts with slim margins there may be a call for a recount.

10:05 p.m.

These are the results of the Somerville preliminary elections as of 10:00 p.m. on Sep. 16.

SOMERVILLE MAYORAL PRELIMINARY

SOMERVILLE CITY COUNCILOR-AT-LARGE PRELIMINARY

SOMERVILLE SCHOOL COMMITTEE WARD 3 PRELIMINARY

SOMERVILLE CITY COUNCIL WARD 7 PRELIMINARY

8 p.m.

Polls have closed across the City of Somerville as it holds its preliminary election Tuesday. The mayoral, City Councilor At-Large, City Council Ward 7 and Ward 3 School Committee races will be narrowed before the municipal election on November 4. After the preliminary election, the top two candidates will remain in each position pool except for the councilor at-large race, where eight candidates will advance to the general election.

The mayoral candidates on the ballot include two-term incumbent Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, who is seeking a third term, and challengers Willie Burnley Jr. and Jake Wilson, both currently serving as at-large city councilors.

Ballantyne has touted accomplishments like creating more affordable housing and achieving fiscal reforms, but has been criticized for failure to act on certain initiatives and lack of transparency. 

The councilor at-large race sees incumbents Kristen Strezo and Will Mbah being challenged by Scott Istvan, Marianne Walles, Tuesday N. Thomas, Ben Wheeler, Ari Iaccarino, Holly Simione, Justin Klekota, Christopher Ryan Spicer, Jonathan Link and Jack Perenick.

Wilbert Pineda, Michael Murray and Emily E. Hardt are running for the open Ward 7 Councilor seat. For the open School Committee seat in Ward 3, the candidates are Jessie C. Ratey, Kat S. Johnston and Michele Lippens.