Condon (Ward 2), Winslow (Ward 6) reelected; Taylor tops Ward 5 in contested City Council races

Voters return Councillors-at-Large McDonald, Spadafora, Hayes; new to School Committee is Hortie (Ward 5)

By Steve Freker

Along with the mayoral race, the spotlight in the 2023 Malden municipal race also shone on the contested races for the City Council. In addition to one newcomer for the next two years on the City Council, there will also be a new face on the Malden School Committee for the 2024-2025 term.

Most of the spotlight’s “beam” was on Ward 5 in this election, due to the fact there were open seats for both City Council and School Committee. Both longtime Malden City Councillor/present City Council President Barbara Murphy and Ward 5 School Committee member Adam Weldai announced earlier this year they would not be seeking reelection. In a closely contested Ward 5 Councillor race, local activist and volunteer Ari Taylor topped first-time candidate Julie E. Turner, 804-627 votes, with Taylor winning the ward 55-43 percent.

Taylor was the runner-up in a challenge to incumbent Councillor Murphy in the 2019 municipal election. Murphy publicly endorsed Turner in this year’s election.

The Councillor’s race brought out a large turnout of Ward 5 voters, nearly 1,500, which Malden election watchers say was the largest in nearly 15 years.

“I am deeply honored to be the City Councillor-elect for Ward 5 in Malden,” Taylor said on a Facebook post on Election Night. “While my name was on the ballot, ultimately this election was not about me — it was about all of us, our neighborhood, our community — and building a shared future together.”

Representing Malden’s Ward 5 on the School Committee for the next term will be political newcomer Elizabeth Hortie, a private practice psychotherapist who formerly worked in public school education, who ran unopposed, receiving 1,103 votes. All other School Committee members: Michael Drummey (Ward 1, 603 votes); Robert McCarthy Jr. (Ward 2, 784 votes); Vice Chairperson Jennifer Spadafora (Ward 3, 1,016 votes); Dawn Macklin (Ward 4, 545 votes); Joseph Gray (Ward 6, 882 votes); Keith Bernard (Ward 7, 549 votes); and Sharyn Rose-Zeiberg (Ward 8, 579 votes) ran unopposed and were all elected Tuesday.

There were three contested races for City Council seats Tuesday. For Councillor-at-Large, all three incumbents were returned to the Council in a four-person field: Carey McDonald (4,365 votes), Craig Spadafora (4,298 votes) and Karen Colón Hayes (4,172 votes). Finishing fourth and out of the running was Dante DiSerio (2,344 votes), a Ward 8 resident.

McDonald and Hayes were reelected to their second term, while Spadafora, who is the longest continuous serving City Councillor, first elected in 2004, was elected to his 11th term. For Ward 2 Councillor, longtime incumbent Paul Condon, who has served in parts of five decades as one of the most veteran Councillors of all-time, was reelected to his 16th term overall when he defeated challenger/political newcomer Sheila Rachels, 570-362 votes, winning all three precincts in the ward with a 61-38 percent tally in the final numbers.

“I am grateful to be reelected to another term and also thankful to all the residents of Ward 2 who supported me in this race,” Councillor Condon said. “I congratulate my opponent for running a good campaign.”

In Ward 6, incumbent Stephen Winslow held off a challenge by former School Committee member Jerry Leone, 640-444 votes, 59-40 percent. “Thank you to all of our supporters and those who helped with my campaign,” said Councillor Winslow, who was reelected to a second term in Ward 6, after serving two terms previously as an at-large Councillor. “I look forward to continuing to work hard for Ward 6 residents and those across the city on other issues.”

All of the other Ward Councillors ran unopposed and were reelected: Peg Crowe (Ward 1, 639 votes); Amanda Linehan (Ward 3, 1,053 votes); Ryan O’Malley (Ward 4, 568 votes); Chris Simonelli (Ward 7, 536 votes); and Jadeane Sica (Ward 8, 565 votes).