Waltham elects 1st woman mayor; Newton stays pat

McCarthy, a lawyer who has served on the School Committee and held other posts in city government, beat Stanley by a tally of 9,139 to 3,867, according to unofficial results from the city clerk's office.

"I think the significance of this to me is not going down history as the first woman mayor, but that the candidate who in May 2003 had no money, a grass-roots organization, [and] a reputation for hard work was successful," said McCarthy, 50.

She replaces the ousted first-term incumbent mayor, David F. Gately, who suffered a humiliating third-place finish in a four-way, nonpartisan preliminary election Sept. 16.

Thomas M. Stanley, a city councilor and a state representative, congratulated McCarthy outside her victory party at the local American Legion hall.

"It was a tremendous victory on her part, and I'm looking forward to working with her, in my capacity as state representative, to make Waltham a better place," he said.

The outcome of a Waltham ballot question was even more lopsided. By a 5-to-1 ratio, voters rejected a proposal to cut the city budget by about one-fourth, through a $40 million cut in property taxes. The measure was the brainchild of the city's Libertarian Committee leader, Richard Aucoin. City officials had railed against the proposal, saying it would lead to massive layoffs and new fees for trash pickup, school bus transportation, student activities, and other services.

In Newton, the Taxpayers Association fared badly in its campaign to oust incumbents from the School Committee and Board of Aldermen and replace them with a slate of candidates endorsed by the antitax group.

Only one of 27 incumbents, Allan L. Ciccone, failed to win reelection, according to unofficial results from the Election Commission. Final tallies were delayed last night because of computer problems.

Newton voters had faced a daunting challenge: a ballot bearing the names of 54 candidates seeking 32 seats on the Board of Aldermen and School Committee. The field of candidates, the largest in the city in a quarter-century, confused even voters who had followed the races closely, according to Brian Camenker, leader of the Taxpayers Association.

Camenker said his organization used 75 volunteers to call residents and get out the vote. But the city Democratic Committee, teachers unions, and parent-teachers groups were apparently far more effective at identifying sympathetic voters and getting them to the polls.

"Every poll we took showed us winning a lot," said Camenker, who described the elderly and longtime homeowners as his groups base of support. "But we were up against some people who are very, very good at running elections. The incumbents, they've been doing this for 25 years, and as soon as you showed up at the polls today, you saw the machine."

By several accounts, the sprawling field reflected anger with the city government, particularly over its handling of a now-postponed multimillion-dollar renovaton of Newton North High School.

Mayor David Cohen stunned many Newton residents last fall when he announced that planned renovations could not begin in 2004 as expected and that the school would have to be closed for two years and students bused elsewhere. The project has since been put on hold, and voters are expected next year to consider, among other proposals, an $84 million hybrid plan of renovation and construction.

Needham voters, meanwhile, approved a ballot question to break through the state's property tax cap to borrow $51.3 million to renovate the town's 73-year-old high school, including $41 million to repair heating and ventilation problems and to bring the school into compliance with federal accessibility regulations.

With all 10 of the town's precincts reporting, the override question passed overwhelmingly, 5,595 to 3,073, according to Town Clerk Tedi Eaton. The proposed capital project is the largest the town has ever seen.

In Lowell, voters kept all eight incumbent city councilors and elected a ninth councilor, James L. Milinazzo. Woburn voters reelected Mayor John C. Curran with 6,556 votes over challenger Bryan Melanson, who received 5,820 votes, according to unofficial results.

Methuen Mayor Sharon M. Pollard was elected to her third term, beating Councilor Todd B. Woekel 5,810 to 3,584, according to last night's unofficial results.

And in Nashua, voters reelected Mayor Bernard Streeter over two challengers, Alderman at Large Steven Bolton and write-in candidate Don Davidson.

Christine McConville of the Globe staff contributed to this report.

Christine McConville of the Globe staff contributed to this report.