Incumbent District 6 Councilor Matt O’Malley announced on December 2 that after serving District 6 for ten years and having received the most votes for a district councilor ever, he will not be seeking re-election next year.
District 6 Councilor Matt O’Malley.
In a message on his website, O’Malley provided a short history of what he has accomplished over the past ten years, and talked about the birth of his daughter, Margot Gillian, who was born in September, as “the greatest moment of my life.”
Throughout his decade as City Councilor, O’Malley has been a leader on environmental issues and has worked to reduce plastic waste, increase renewable energy, and pushed for more environmentally friendly buildings, among many other things. Also during his time, as a councilor, renovations have taken place at Jamaica Pond, the JP Branch Library, and the Engine 42 firehouse, among others. O’Malley also worked to invest money in public works projects and listened to constituent concerns on development projects and public safety issues.
O’Malley has also personally attended many neighborhood association meetings over the years to provide updates on what his office was working on and to learn about what is most important to neighborhoods in the district.
“It is with an appreciative heart, that I share with you today that I will not be seeking reelection next year,” O’Malley wrote. “I am incredibly proud of our achievements over the last decade, and profoundly excited about the opportunities that lay ahead for our district. This wasn’t an easy decision to make, but the right one for me and my family. While politics (particularly in Boston) can be rough and tumble, the support and votes of confidence this district has given me time and time again is a lot to walk away from. I am forever grateful. Parenthood offers one helluva perspective. As proud as I am to be called Councilor, being called Dad will be the greatest title I can ever earn.”
He said that he will be in touch virtually with many constituents over the next few months to thank them, adding that he will throw a “THANK YOU DISTRICT 6 PARTY” next year once it is safe.
Many constituents and colleagues took to Twitter to thank O’Malley for his work over the past decade and wish him luck in his future endeavors.
O’Malley said he will still remain in the position for the entirety of 2021, as his term is up in January 2022. “I am enormously grateful to my colleagues and the mayor for their partnership in this work and even more committed to a bold environmental agenda in the year ahead,” he said of his environmental work. O’Malley told the Boston Globe that he does not yet know what will come next, “though he expects to continue working on public policy and serve the rest of his term…,” the article states.
“Twenty-five years ago, a geeky, red-haired teen designed his nascent political logo on the back of a calculus textbook,” the end of the message reads. “You helped that kid achieve his dream and serve the people and neighborhoods that we know and love. Words will never be able to convey how much this job, my city, and our neighbors mean to me. I hope I have made you proud and will strive to continue to do so this year and beyond.”
To read the whole message, visit votemattomalley.com/thankyou