O’Malley to depart from council
City Councilor Matt O’Malley won’t run for reelection next year as he looks forward to “the next chapter” following many years in and around local politics.
“Leadership is knowing when you should pass the baton to another generation,” O’Malley said, noting that he was sworn in 10 years ago next week after winning a special election. “I don’t think anyone should get into politics for life.”
O’Malley, a new father, said he made the decision recently not to run for another two-year term in 2021, though there’s no one specific reason why.
“Parenthood is one hell of a perspective,” the longtime resident of the Roslindale and West Roxbury area told the Herald on Wednesday. “I’m excited about writing the next chapter.”
He said he expects to finish out his term, and he’s not sure what he’ll do next.
O’Malley, now 41, is the longest consecutively serving councilor on the body, though Michael Flaherty has more years in total. O’Malley interned for then-councilor Peggy Davis Mullen when he was 20 years old, and he worked for councilors and other area elected officials, including former Suffolk Sheriff Andrea Cabral and state Treasurer Steve Grossman.
The council, which has moved leftward and now has unprecedented numbers of women and people of color has completely turned over since he first started. “Literally the entire council has changed, and it’s a lot more reflective of the city, which is great,” O’Malley said.
O’Malley, who frequently draws chuckles in council meetings for his cheerfully strict adherence to the rules of decorum and periodic quotes from “The Office,” became known as a lead advocate for environmental issues on the council, championing the plastic bag ban and other green initiatives.
The councilor’s district is a politically diverse — and politically active — one, including progressive Jamaica Plain and more conservative West Roxbury, which in recent years has taken to increasingly bucking initiatives coming out of City Hall. O’Malley has taken flak from various sides for his positions — from the left on his vote in favor of the mayor’s budget earlier this year, from the right on his support for bike lanes and similar initiatives — but the councilor, known for having a particularly robust constituent services operation, hasn’t had much of a problem electorally in the city’s highest-voting district.
O’Malley said his office had a rule that all resident calls had to be returned in 24 hours, and the office processed 6,300 constituent-service cases over the decade.
“The constituent service piece is just so important to be an effective councilor,” he said.