Worcester 2023 Election Guide: Where To Vote, Candidate Profiles

WORCESTER, MA — It'll be a historic election in Worcester in 2023 no matter who wins.

Here are just a few reasons why: for the first time in years every city council race is competitive; 2023 is the first municipal election with a new way of picking school committee members; Worcester has the chance to elect its first Black or openly gay mayor; and this is the first election since 2005 with five mayoral candidates in the mix.

We've compiled all the pertinent information to know before you head to the polls on Tuesday — unless you've already voted. The clerk has reported that Worcester voters have requested and returned the most mail-in ballots in local election history. Plus the city offered a week of early voting starting on Oct. 28.

Where, When To Vote

Polls are open in Worcester on Nov. 7 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. There are dozens of polling locations across Worcester's 10 precincts. You can plug in your address on the City Clerk's website to find your polling location.

If you're voting either by mail or absentee, you can drop your ballot off at City Hall or use a drop box located at any fire station.

Who's on the ballot

Here are the candidates competing (in some cases, candidates are running uncontested) for seats in 2023.

On Sept. 28, Worcester Patch sent every city council and school committee candidate a questionnaire with a deadline of Oct. 27. We also asked all five mayoral candidates for interviews. Find links to profiles of candidates below.

Mayor

• Khrystian King
• Bill Coleman
• Donna Colorio
• Joseph Petty (i)
• Guillermo Creamer Jr.

City Council At-Large (pick up to six)

• Guillermo Creamer Jr.
• Maydee Morales
• Kate Toomey (i)
• Bill Coleman
• Donna Colorio (i)
• Domenica Perrone
• Johanna Hampton-Dance
• Thu Nguyen (i)
• Joseph Petty (i)
• Morris Bergman (i)
• Khrystian King (i)

Why are mayoral candidates also running for city council? Under Worcester's city charter, candidates must win an at-large seat AND get the most votes in the mayoral election to become mayor. The mayor is effectively an at-large city councilor, but with extra powers, like also chairing the school committee, and picking members of council committees.

District 1 City Council

• Jenny Pacillo
• David Peterson

District 2 City Council

• Robert Bilotta
• Candy Mero-Carlson (i)

District 3 City Council

• George Russell (i)
• Feanna Jattan-Singh

District 4 City Council

• Katia Norford
• Luis Ojeda

District 5 City Council

• Jose Rivera
• Etel Haxhiaj (i)

School Committee At-Large (pick two)

• Sue Mailman (i)
• Laura Clancey (i)
• Maureen Binienda
• Tracy O'Connell Novick (i)

District A School Committee

• Molly McCullough

District B School Committee

• Vanessa Alvarez

District C School Committee

• Dianna Biancheria
• Jermoh Kamara

District D School Committee

• Alex Guardiola

District E School Committee

• Nelly Medina
• Kathi Roy

District F School Committee

• Jermaine Johnson

Worcester & Hampshire Senate District

• Jonathan Zlotnik (D)
• Peter Durant (R)

Worcester 2023 election results

Patch will be covering the Nov. 7 election live, and will send out an alert about results as soon as they are available. Sign up for free email alerts here.

Looking for more coverage? See all Worcester Patch coverage of the 2023 races, including the preliminary races.