Michelle Wu put her political capital into three state Senate races. One of her candidates lost. One is the incumbent who lost. The third is ahead by 20 votes in a race nobody has called.
Most coverage has described this as Wu backing insurgents against the Beacon Hill establishment. That framing is wrong in a way that matters, because in one of the three races she endorsed the incumbent, and he is the one who got unseated.
What the fight was actually about
The through line is Wu’s commercial property tax proposal.
Boston’s tax base leans heavily on commercial real estate. As office values fell, Wu sought authority to shift more of the levy onto commercial property temporarily, to keep residential tax bills from spiking. That required a home rule petition and State House approval.
The plan died in the Senate in January. Wu’s endorsements track exactly who helped and who did not:
- Michael Rush sponsored the measure as a Senate amendment. Wu endorsed Rush, the incumbent.
- Nicholas Collins and William Brownsberger led the opposition that killed it. Wu endorsed challengers against both.
So this was not an ideological campaign against incumbency. It was a mayor rewarding an ally and punishing two opponents on one specific vote.
Race one: Norfolk and Suffolk, where Wu’s ally lost
| Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Persis Yu | 15,609 | 51.07% |
| Michael Rush (incumbent) | 14,956 | 48.93% |
Margin: 653 votes, 2.14 points.
Rush is an eight-term incumbent and the Senate Majority Whip, the third-ranking member of the chamber. He is also the only member of Senate leadership to lose a primary this cycle, and Wu had endorsed him.
The geography was decisive. Yu took the Boston portion of the district by about 2,400 votes. Rush carried Dedham, Norwood, Walpole, and Westwood. The suburbs were not enough.
Yu: “We have built an extraordinary people-powered campaign, and will bring this same energy to Beacon Hill as we build an economy that works for families, not corporations and billionaires.”
Rush has not been reported as conceding.
Race two: First Suffolk, where Wu’s challenger lost
| Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Nicholas Collins (incumbent) | 11,149 | 53.93% |
| Latoya Gayle | 9,024 | 43.65% |
| Juwan Skeens | 502 | 2.43% |
Margin: 2,125 votes, 10.28 points. Gayle conceded shortly after 10 p.m.
Collins, who led the opposition to Wu’s tax plan, held South Boston and survived by ten points against a first-time candidate with the mayor’s backing.
Collins afterward: “Sometimes you have to dust off the cleats. Nobody owns a seat, and I think it’s made me a better senator. It’s tested my team and brought out the best in the district.”
Gayle’s response to that: “I hope he means that.”
Race three: Suffolk and Middlesex, still undecided
| Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Daniel Lander | 12,088 | 50.04% |
| William Brownsberger (incumbent) | 12,068 | 49.96% |
Margin: 20 votes, 0.083 percent. No outlet has called it. Brownsberger is the Senate President Pro Tempore.
The lead has changed twice. Brownsberger was up 61 votes early Wednesday morning and down 20 by that afternoon. Lander led Cambridge and Watertown and ran about 1,700 votes ahead in Boston. Brownsberger led Belmont by about 2,200.
This margin is well inside the 0.5 percent threshold that permits a recount petition. The deadline to file is 3 p.m. Thursday, September 3, and Massachusetts has no automatic recount: if neither candidate petitions, the count stands as certified.
The scorecard
Of the three races Wu invested in:
- Her endorsed incumbent, Rush, lost.
- Her endorsed challenger, Gayle, lost by ten points.
- Her endorsed challenger, Lander, leads by 20 votes in an uncalled race.
Zero confirmed wins. Two confirmed losses. One outcome that may take until September 11 to resolve.
The complication in reading it as a rebuke is that Yu, who beat Wu’s ally, ran to Rush’s left and is more likely to support the mayor’s agenda than the senator she replaced. The mayor lost the race and may have gained the vote.
Wu on election night called Lander’s showing “a real reflection of the energy on the ground” and Gayle’s loss “an incredible accomplishment” for a first-time candidate. On whether her endorsements moved voters: “Your vote is deeply personal. Everyone thinks about that in their own unique way.”
Her August case for intervening was blunter: “We can’t have state senators representing Boston add to those obstacles. We need partners who join the city in running towards problems to find solutions.”
State Senator Lydia Edwards, an ally, had told the Globe earlier this year that she wondered whether the mayor’s endorsements were “normal politics” or “a division that can’t be mended.”
Common questions
Which state Senate races did Michelle Wu get involved in?
Three. She endorsed incumbent Michael Rush in Norfolk and Suffolk, and endorsed challengers against incumbents Nicholas Collins in the First Suffolk and William Brownsberger in Suffolk and Middlesex.
Why did she endorse in these races?
Rush sponsored her commercial property tax shift as a Senate amendment. Collins and Brownsberger led the opposition that defeated it in January.
Did any Wu-endorsed candidate win?
Not confirmed. Rush lost, Gayle lost, and Lander leads Brownsberger by 20 votes in a race that has not been called.
Is the Brownsberger race going to a recount?
It is eligible. The margin of 0.083 percent is well inside the 0.5 percent threshold. Massachusetts has no automatic recount, so a candidate must petition by 3 p.m. September 3. Neither has been reported as filing.
Who is Persis Yu?
The Democratic nominee in the Norfolk and Suffolk district, who defeated eight-term incumbent and Senate Majority Whip Michael Rush by 653 votes, running to his left on economic issues.
Vote totals from Associated Press tabulation as of the afternoon of September 2, 2026. All results unofficial; no certified results have been published. Quotations as reported by the Boston Globe, MassLive, CommonWealth Beacon, and the Dorchester Reporter. General information, not legal advice.