New Bedford 2021 Election
WHO RAN
Click names written in black to read that candidate’s profile.
City Council at Large
Ian Abreu
Shane Burgo
Naomi Carney
Paul Chasse
Brian Gomes
Jason Mello
Linda Morad
Scott Pemberton
David Sullivan
Lisa White
Assessor at Large
Kimberly Saunders
Erik Andrade
Ward 1
Leo Choquette
William “Brad” Markey
Ward 2
Maria Giesta (unopposed)
Ward 3
Hugh Dunn (unopposed)
Ward 4
Derek Baptiste (unopposed)
Ward 5
Zach Boyer
Scott Lima
Ward 6
Joseph P. Lopes
Ryan Pereira
School Committee
Melissa Costa
Colleen Dawicki
Ross M. Grace Jr.
Note: Candidate profiles were compiled from questionnaires emailed to all candidates for office. Those who did not return questionnaires were not included.
Watch The Chat: A conversation with the Democratic candidates for Bristol County Sheriff
Jack Spillane sat down with the candidates — Fall River attorney Nick Bernier, Attleboro Mayor Paul Heroux and former Somerset Police Chief George McNeil — for a special 90-minute Zoom session of The Chat. Watch it here.
Sheriff Hodgson gets endorsement, words of support from Gov. Baker
Baker, a moderate Republican with little demonstrated patience for the GOP’s Trump wing, praised Hodgson, who was the former president’s honorary campaign chair in 2020.
Newcomers bring political skills, energy to New Bedford government
With Shane Burgo’s election, five of 11 city councilors in New Bedford are now persons of color. That’s something the city can take pride in. And it illustrates the changing nature of our city.
In redistricting battle, it’s every pol for the incumbents
Late Thursday the House passed a plan that creates a minority-majority district in New Bedford but keeps three suburban legislators representing small parts of the city’s far North End.
Right-leaning voices ring out at New Bedford debate
You really would not have been surprised if former President Trump had made an appearance shouting, “Make New Bedford Great Again!” and candidates at the council table all started banging their fists and shouting, “Four more years!”
Lima to face Boyer for Ward 5 City Council in New Bedford
Lima, chairman of the council’s Environmental Affairs and Audit committees, garnered more than twice the vote of his two opponents combined, with 69.03%.
Running for office in New Bedford? No thanks
There are so few candidates running for office in New Bedford this year that there will be no preliminary election in five of the city’s six wards.
Difficult questions persist in City Councilor Dunn’s OUI case
The three New Bedford patrolmen had no good answers for why they did not ask Dunn where he was coming from that rainy Friday night; if he had been drinking; and how he crashed his Hyundai Genesis into both a Chevy truck and a Toyota SUV.
City councilor on OUI rap: ‘They have nothing on me’
Councilor Dunn was mostly dismissive of the charges filed against him. He cited it as “all politics,” and a “hit job.” He said the DA was “coming after me” and “trying to prove something.”
Josh Amaral bows out of School Committee race
Amaral, who will not seek a third term, has been on the School Committee since he was little over a year out of UMass Dartmouth, where he was a political science major.
Getting neighborly with New Bedford’s at-large challengers
Taking a look at where a candidate lives in the city can provide a glimpse into who they are and what their personal interests are.
DA seeks justice in case of Councilor Hugh Dunn
State police say an EMT and paramedic on the scene the night of the accidents described it as “obvious” that he had been drinking and that they smelled alcohol on his breath.
What the heck is happening in the South End?
A month into the 2021 municipal election’s campaign filing period, the William Street political world is abuzz over a Ward 6 race that would normally be a low-key affair.
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