Written by Mike Kriesberg
In the most recent Presidential Election, voters’ concerns about the cost of living was a top issue. As expected, both major candidates talked extensively about the rising cost of healthcare, consumer goods, and groceries. But something else broke through that is not usually heard at the national level – zoning reform. On the main stage at the Democratic Nation Convention, former President Obama criticized “outdated laws and regulations that have made it harder to build homes for working people.”
In Massachusetts, we are neither strangers to outdated laws and regulations nor the battles that go along with changing them. The MBTA-Communities Act, the legalization of ADUs in the Affordable Homes Act, and other local reforms have placed often controversial zoning reforms front and center at Town Meetings and City Council hearings across the Commonwealth.
The question for this election cycle – the first since 2024 – was how voters and candidates would respond to these and other local reform efforts, especially given the growing prominence of the issue in the national political discourse. Would incumbents who took pro-housing stances, whether on broad zoning reform initiatives or on individual projects, win reelection? Would new candidates run on making it easier to build new homes?
In the cities and towns where Abundant Housing MA and the Abundant Housing MA IE-PAC engaged this cycle, the answer was clear: Yes and Yes.
We saw over and over again that candidates who ran on a pro-housing platform unseated incumbents, held off challengers, and won open seats.
The strongest showing for pro-housing candidates was in Salem, where we endorsed 7 candidates and all of them won. Some, like Kyle Davis and Alice Merkl, were incumbents who just weeks before the election voted to eliminate minimum parking requirements for multi-family developments, while first-timers Erin Turowski, Jason Sydoriak, Lydia King, Katelyn Holappa, and Andrew Smith all ran on pro-housing platforms. Notably, the only incumbent to lose their seat was the sole opponent of the parking reform.
After a tough cycle for pro-housing candidates in 2023, this year’s results in Newton marked a meaningful improvement. Maria Greenberg held on to her seat in Ward 1 and in the most contested race of the night (at-large in Ward 4) both AHMA-endorsed candidates won, flipping one seat and holding on to the other. Sean Roche also secured the second at-large seat in Ward 6.
There were also encouraging signs coming out of Medford. Five out of our six endorsed candidates were victorious, four of whom were incumbents facing criticism for supporting a large-scale rezoning of Medford. Additionally, AHMA endorsee Liz Mullane was able to pick up a seat vacated by outgoing Council Vice-President Kit Collins, thereby maintaining a pro-housing majority on the council.
These victories were not limited to a few towns. Candidates in Boston, Somerville, Worcester, Franklin, and Cambridge also notched victories:
- In Boston, two of the City’s more pro-housing councilors, Enrique Pepen and Henry Santana, earned resounding victories.
- Somerville is in a good position to pass some major pro-housing reforms after electing a pro-housing majority that includes AHMA endorsee Ben Wheeler and multiple Somerville YIMBY endorsed candidates.
- In Worcester, Rob Bilotta flipped a seat in his victory over Candy Mero-Carlson, while incumbents Khrystian King and Mayor Joe Petty led the at-large vote. However, Etel Haxhiaj lost her bid for reelection against Jose Rivera.
- Of the seven new Town Councilors elected in Franklin, two will be AHMA endorsees Max Morrongiello and Michael LeBlanc.
Lastly, while we did not endorse in Cambridge, it is worth noting that the Cambridge City Council retained its pro-housing majority after passing the most ambitious zoning reform in the country. Councilors Marc McGovern, Sumbul Siddiqui, Burhan Azeem, Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler, and Denise Simmons all won reelection, while those running on a platform to repeal the reform lost.
Taken together, these results demonstrate that voters are ready for leaders who will confront the housing shortage head-on by supporting reforms that make it easier to build more homes. Challengers eyeing a seat in public office and incumbents looking to hold on to their seats next fall should take note of the growing pro-housing movement in their communities. If the results of this most recent election cycle are any indication, they will be rewarded at the ballot box.