The bottom 4 CC candidates all transferred more votes to the next alphabetical candidate than any other candidate: Battle to Bisio 51% Winters to Zusy 33% Rivkin to Sherin 21% Sherin to Simmons 31% Melanson to Nolan (3rd) 18% Hsu to Nolan 22% Bisio to Bullister (2nd) 22% Wilson to Zusy (2nd) 15%

Compare to the notably lower numbers of alphabetical transfers in the 2023 election: Hsu to Klein (3rd) 9% Pierre to Simmons 24% Pasquarello to Pickett (2nd) 12% Wang to Wilson (4th) 7% Winters to Zusy (2nd) 13% Muchnik to Nolan 15% Walker to Wilson 17% Brown to Hanratty 16%

Note that in 2025, there was only 1 transfer between candidates that were endorsed by the same group (Wilson to Zusy, CCC). In 2023, all but the first transfer were between candidates with shared endorsements. Winters to Zusy was higher in 2025 despite sharing CCC endorsements in 2023.

Looking at ideologically similar but differently alphabetized candidates, there are ~500 more voters who voted the bottom 8 candidates #1 and subsequents alphabetically, than the rates from the previous election. That's more than the turnout difference between the School Committee and City Council!

Plus, we only saw the transfers from the bottom 8 candidates, who got 16% of the #1 votes. Extrapolating this to other candidates whose votes didn't transfer suggests ~3000 voters who ranked CC candidates alphabetically. That may be excessive - voters might choose #1 intentionally, then #2 alpha.

Note also this effect was also present in the School Committee votes. Gause to Goetz 39% Bejnood to Bowers 35% Coburn to de Paula Santos 29% Battle to Bowers 19% Bowers to de Paula Santos 49% Lee to Roja Villarreal 14% Goetz to Harding 11% (elected) + Havstad 18% Hunter to Jaikumar (3rd) 14%

Comparing that to the 2023 election's school committee is tough, because there were so many fewer candidates. Bejnood to Harding (2nd) 17% Pierre to Rojas Villarreal 18% Travers to D. Weinstein (5th) 11% Note: Bejnood to Harding did appear in 2025 non-consecutively, and that was only 5%.