“Three terms and you’re out” could be the new motto at City Hall if mayoral and councilor term limits discussed yesterday by city councilors are approved.
City Councilor John Tobin proposed capping the amount of time a mayor or councilor can spend in office at 12 years to increase voter turnout and interest in the city.
“I was never a supporter of term limits when I got here on this party,” Tobin said. “What I’ve seen is we need to change things for the future.”
Mayor Thomas Menino has been in office since stepping in as acting mayor for Robert Flynn in 1993. When he completes his current fourth term, he will be the longest-serving mayor in Boston history. Tobin, however, said his proposal is not an “an indictment” of his colleagues, but an attempt to interest voters after particularly low turnout last November.
“I’m concerned about the lack of voter turnout for the city of Boston,” Tobin said. “We had a non-mayoral race last year and only 13 percent of registered voters turned out, which is embarrassing.”
Tobin said term limits allow politicians to work toward a set goal and then return to their previous jobs. He said he hopes to extend city council terms from two years to four years so mayoral elections and council elections can always coincide.
He said this setup would “give future councilors more time to do their jobs” and less time for campaigning. When council and mayoral elections coincide and both offices are on the ballot, media and public attention is raised and leads to higher voter turnout, he added.
If the bill passes, it probably would not apply to Menino or the current council, Tobin said.
Tobin used himself as an example during his address to the council and pointed out that he ran for councilor several times, once unopposed. Though there are probably other worthy candidates, potential candidates do not run because they are used to having one leader, he said.
“We’re losing a lot of talent that way,” Tobin said.
Though Tobin’s order moved to hearing after just eight minutes of explanation, Councilor Salvatore LaMattina said he did not have an opinion on the matter, but pointed out Menino’s popularity among voters and the number of times he has been reelected.
“I think it’s up to the voters to decide,” he said. “I’m open-minded.”
Menino spokeswoman Jennifer Mehigan said she does not believe the proposal is specifically in response to Menino’s lengthy time in office. She would not comment on whether he plans to run again in 2009.
“The proposal would put term limits on both city councilors and the mayor,” Mehigan said in an email. “Due to [this] fact, we do not feel that Councilor Tobin’s proposal targets Mayor Menino.”
