Worcester City Council Election 2023

On Sept. 5, Worcester will hold its preliminary election to determine which candidates will compete for city council in the general election on November 7. Only two candidates may appear on the ballot for each district city councilor seat. The two candidates who earn the most votes on Sept. 5 will appear on the Nov. 7 ballot.

There are four contested races for Worcester City Council on the preliminary ballot on Sept. 5. These races have over two candidates who qualified, meaning at least one candidate on the Sept. 5 ballot will not appear on the general election ballot on Nov. 7. These are the races in Districts One, Two, Four, and Five.

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This Week in Worcester Podcast Returns

In 2019 This Week in Worcester produced 14 episodes of its podcast. It has not returned since… until now.

This Week in Worcester invited all candidates in these races to join our podcast for a one-on-one discussion about housing, homelessness, leadership selection, and police reform. Issues specific to each district were also discussed with each candidate.

While candidates frequently attend candidate forums, use advertisements, and hold various campaign events, residents rarely have the opportunity to hear candidates speak at length on these important issues. This Week in Worcester sought to change that. Seven of the nine candidates on the ballot in districts one, two, and four, and five, sat down remotely to have these discussions. Additional content with candidates from district four is coming soon.

After the preliminary election, we intend to invite all city council candidates on the general election ballot on Nov. 5 to appear on the podcast. Below you will find each candidate currently on the ballot, links to their websites and social media pages, and the full interview with each candidate that appeared on the This Week in Worcester podcast.

A special thank you to the candidates that elected to meet with us: district one candidates Jenny Pacillo and Dave Peterson, District Two Councilor Candy-Mero Carlson, district two challenger Robert Bilotta, district four candidates Ted Kostas, Maria Montano, Maureen Schwab, District Five Councilor Etel Haxhiaj, and district five challengers Edson Montero and Jose Antonio Rivera.