Boston Mayor Michelle Wu wins preliminary, set to face Josh Kraft in November

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu easily topped the ticket in Tuesday s preliminary and will move onto the November general ballot when she will face longtime philanthropist Josh Kraft who was trailing her by roughly points soon after polls closed Wu the popular first-term progressive mayor was so far ahead of her three challengers that the race was called for her by the Associated Press before p m Polls closed at p m Early results were in line with an Emerson College poll issued last week that demonstrated Kraft was behind Wu by points with just days to go before the preliminary poll As of p m Wu had roughly percent of the vote Kraft a son of the billionaire New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft had roughly of the vote The Associated Press called the second-place for Kraft before p m He and Wu will face off in November The other two candidates Robert Cappucci a retired Boston Police officer and public activist Domingos DaRosa each had managed to secure less than of the vote according to the preliminary results available after the polls closed Wu and Kraft had yet to make it to their vote night parties an outdoor rally for Wu in Roslindale and an event at the Ironworkers Local Hall for Kraft in South Boston by the time the race was called A modest crowd was gathered in South Boston for Kraft as music blared across speakers and supporters mingled inside the union s headquarters Iron Workers Local endorsed Kraft earlier this year Anthony Seymour who described himself as a friend of Kraft described the gathered crowd that Boston is going in the wrong direction I think for the most of part that things in Boston are really taking a deep dive for the worst reason and we re here right now to take it up he explained If you believe in Josh you believe in change Vincent Coyle the business manager for the South Boston-based union Ironworkers Local stated a large number of of his members are struggling to find work and have been pushed out of the city because of high housing costs Our work here has slowed down big time A lot of the commercial building has stopped Various housing but not a lot Coyle explained the Herald shortly after addressing the crowd at Kraft s event Coyle mentioned a conquest for Kraft Tuesday night is as simple as moving forward There s another voting after this he declared We want to see where the chips lie Kraft injected millions of his own personal money into the campaign and set records for spending in a Boston mayoral preliminary poll Wu the city s first Asian and female leader has been bolstered in part by her defense of the city against attacks from the Trump administration Kraft whose father has had a friendly relationship with President Donald Trump in the past has also attacked the president saying at a union campaign event last month that Trump has stoked hatred and division throughout our country Kraft has pushed Wu particularly hard on housing saying she hasn t done enough to increase options and affordability In Wu advanced a proposal to cap annual rent increases for majority of units that was blocked by the state Legislature Kraft has proposed a rent control system that would allow landlords to opt in to receive a real estate tax rebate after years It would not require legislative approval Herald wire services contributed Boston mayoral candidate Josh Kraft makes a Preliminary Electoral contest Day appearance outside of the Cyclorama polling place Tuesday in Boston Mark Stockwell Boston Herald Voters line up at their polling place on Preliminary Balloting Day in Boston Nancy Lane Boston Herald