Marilyn Petitto Devaney Wins District Three MA Gov. Council Primary

WOBURN, MA — Third District Governor's Council incumbent Marilyn Petitto Devaney is on track to win another term on the council after beating primary challenger Mara Dolan in this week's Democratic primary election, according to the Associated Press.

There is no Republican candidate in the Third District race, meaning Devaney will be running unopposed in this year's general election in November.

Petitto Devaney faced off against Dolan in the primary. The candidates then watched as results came down to the wire through Tuesday night and into Wednesday.

Though Petitto Devaney maintained a lead, her advantage ebbed and flowed. When the last of the district's unofficial polling results came in from the Associated Press on Wednesday afternoon, Petitto Devaney landed on the winning side of a 50.9% - 49.1% result.

Dolan conceded the race around 1:30 p.m.

"What a great race!" she said in a tweet.

"This race was a joy and a labor of love," she continued. "I’m not stopping."

The Third District Governor's Council contest was recently marked by controversy when GBH reported that Petitto Devaney had claimed endorsements from figures like Congressman Jim McGovern and Democratic State Auditor candidate Chris Dempsey that had not in fact happened.

The race had previously featured debate over Petitto Devaney's conduct in Governor's Council proceedings and her record on abortion rights.

Dolan, a public defender, campaigned through recent weeks and months to unseat the more than 20-year incumbent — Petitto Devaney.

Come Election Day this week, both Dolan and Petitto Devaney saw varying fortunes across the more than 30 communities in the Third District.

Where Petitto Devaney took big wins in places including Woburn (2,334 votes - 1,232 votes), Dolan found success elsewhere. She beat Petitto Devaney 816-330 in Lincoln, building a similarly large margin in Concord (2,989 - 848), according to the AP.

Petitto Devaney won in Burlington 1,743 - 984.