# Althea Garrison

Althea Garrison (born October 7, 1940) is an American politician from Boston, Massachusetts who previously served a single term in the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1993–1995) and a partial term as an at-large councilor on the Boston City Council (2019–2020). She is considered the earliest transgender person known to have been elected to a state legislature in the United States. She was outed against her will by the Boston Herald after her 1992 election. She is a perennial candidate, having been an unsuccessful candidate for political office at least 44 times.
In her only successful campaign, Garrison won election as a Republican to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1992. She served one term from 1993 to 1995, losing her bid for reelection in 1994. Both before and after this, she has run for office many other times. Her campaigns have seen her run under different party affiliations, varyingly running as Republican, a Democrat, and an independent. Garrison, in the 2010s, described her political ideology as "independent conservative".
Garrison served as an at-large member of the Boston City Council from January 2019 to January 2020 due to a vacancy left by Ayanna Pressley's election to the United States House of Representatives. Because Garrison was the next-place finisher in the 2017 Boston City Council election, Boston City Charter rules gave Garrison the right of first refusal to assume the seat vacated by Pressley. Garrison lost her bid for re-election in November 2019.

## Background

Born in Hahira, Georgia, as the youngest of seven children, Garrison attended Hahira High School. Garrison moved to Boston to attend beauty school, but went on to enroll in Newbury Junior College and received an associate degree. Garrison later received a B.S. degree in administration from Suffolk University, an M.S. degree in management from Lesley College, and a certificate in special studies in administration and management from Harvard University.
According to records in the Suffolk County Probate Court, Garrison petitioned for a name change to Althea Garrison in 1976. The petition stated that the name Althea Garrison "is consistent with petitioner's appearance and medical condition and is the name by which he [sic] will be known in the future."
Besides her one term in the Massachusetts House, Garrison has worked as a clerk in human resources for the Massachusetts state comptroller's office, where she used her vacation time to run for office. She served for four years on the Metropolitan Area Planning Council.

## Political career
### Early years

In 1982 and 1986, Garrison ran unsuccessfully for the Massachusetts House of Representatives as a Democrat. She ran unsuccessfully for Boston City Council in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, and 1991. During the 1991 campaign, the Boston Herald noted that she had run for office nine times, although Garrison herself later described the race as her 10th or 11th bid for office. In the 1991 race, Garrison finished in third place in the District 7 preliminary election.

### Massachusetts House

In 1992, Garrison ran successfully for the 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House, representing the Dorchester and Roxbury areas of Boston. Garrison's 1992 election to the legislature was made possible in part by the fact that she challenged some of the signatures that the then-incumbent representative, Nelson Merced, had submitted to qualify for the Democratic primary ballot. Her challenge was successful and meant that Garrison did not have to run against an incumbent in the general election. In the general election, Garrison defeated Democratic candidate Irene Roman, 2,451 votes to 2,014.
The fact that Garrison had been formerly known as a male was not widely publicized until shortly after she was elected to the legislature. When the Boston Herald asked whether she was a man, Garrison denied it and ended the conversation when asked about her past, including her name change.
In the Massachusetts House, Garrison consistently voted in favor of labor unions, resulting in her being endorsed for re-election by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO and eight unions. On many votes, she voted with the Democrats in the legislature rather than with the Republicans. However, she opposed same-sex marriage and abortion.
Garrison was defeated in her 1994 bid for re-election by Democratic nominee Charlotte Golar Richie by a margin of 2,108 votes to 1,718.

### Unsuccessful bids for office

Garrison has run for office at least 45 times, only once winning election.
   ** 1982: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate, finished third in the primary.
   ** 1985: at-large seat in the 1985 Boston City Council election
   ** 1986: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate, finished third in the primary.
   ** 1987: at-large seat in the 1987 Boston City Council election
   ** 1988: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as an independent candidate, losing 63.6% to 35.7% to Nelson Merced.
   ** 1989: at-large seat in the 1989 Boston City Council election
   ** 1990: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Republican candidate, losing 55.3% to 31.2% to Nelson Merced.
   ** 1991: District 7 seat in the 1991 Boston City Council election
   ** 1995: District 7 seat in the 1995 Boston City Council election
   ** 1996: special election in the 1st Suffolk district in the Massachusetts Senate as a Republican candidate, losing 50.1% to 48.7% to Dick Czubinski in the primary.
   ** 1996: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Republican candidate, losing 54.9% to 45.1% to Charlotte Golar Richie.
   ** 1997: District 7 seat in the 1997 Boston City Council election
   ** 1998: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate, losing 58.5% to 41.5% to Charlotte Golar Richie in the primary.
   ** 1999: District 7 seat in the 1999 Boston City Council election
   ** 1999: special election in the 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate, finishing third in the primary.
   ** 2000: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as an "Independent Progressive" candidate
   ** 2001: 2001 Boston mayoral election
   ** 2002: special election for the 1st Suffolk district in the Massachusetts Senate as a Republican
   ** 2002: 1st Suffolk district in the Massachusetts Senate as a Republican candidate, losing in the primary 68.9% to 31.0% to Walter R. Campbell.
   ** 2003: at-large seat in the 2003 Boston City Council election
   ** 2005: at-large seat in the 2005 Boston City Council election
   ** 2006: 5th Suffolk district in Massachusetts House as a Republican candidate
   ** 2008: 1st Suffolk district in the Massachusetts Senate as an independent candidate, losing 79.0% to 25.0% to Jack Hart.
   ** 2009: District 7 seat in the 2009 Boston City Council election
   ** 2010: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House, finishing third in the Democratic primary
   ** 2011: special election to fill a vacancy on the Boston City Council, District 7, eliminated in February preliminary election
   ** 2011: District 7 seat in the 2011 Boston City Council election
   ** 2012: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as an independent candidate, losing 77.6% to 21.7% to Carlos Henriquez.
   ** 2013: at-large seat in the 2013 Boston City Council election
   ** 2014: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate, losing in the primary 65.3% to 34.3% to Evandro Carvalho.
   ** 2015: District 7 seat in the 2015 Boston City Council election
   ** 2016: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as an independent candidate, losing 83.9% to 15.6% to Evandro Carvalho.
   ** 2017: at-large seat in the 2017 Boston City Council election (fifth place, top four elected)
   ** 2018: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as an independent candidate, losing 88.7% to 11% to Liz Miranda.
   ** 2019: at-large seat in the 2019 Boston City Council election (seventh place, top four elected)
   ** 2020: Register of Probate for Suffolk County, Massachusetts (third place)
   ** 2021: at-large seat in the 2021 Boston City Council election
   ** 2022: 5th Suffolk district in the Massachusetts House as a Democratic candidate (third place)
   ** 2023: District 7 seat in the 2023 Boston City Council election
Offices sought (summary table) :
| Office | Elections run | Primary election campaigns | General election campaigns |
| Massachusetts House | 19 | 15 campaigns overall, 5 successes 9 Democratic primaries 6 Republican primaries (5 successes) | 11 campaigns, 1 victory (Republican nominee 6x, independent candidate 5x) |
| Massachusetts Senate | 4 | 3 campaigns overall, 2 successes 2 Republican primaries | 2 campaigns (Republican nominee 2x) |
| Boston mayor (nonpartisan) | 1 | 1 campaign | — |
| Boston City Council at-large council seat (nonpartisan) | 10 | 9 campaigns, 7 successes (note: 2017 lacked a primary) | 8 campaigns |
| Boston City Council district-constituency seat (nonpartisan) | 9 | 8 campaigns, 2 successes (note: 2023 lacked a primary) | 4 campaigns (3x on ballot, 1x as a write-in) |
| Suffolk County Register of Probate | 1 | — | 1 campaign (independent candidate 1x) |
| Republican State Committeewoman | 1 | — | 1 campaign |

### Boston City Council tenure

Garrison took the at-large seat of former councillor Ayanna Pressley on the Boston City Council, as Pressley left the City Council following her November 2018 election to Congress from Massachusetts's 7th congressional district. City rules require that vacancies for the at-large council seats are filled by the next-placed candidate in the previous election, which was Garrison in November 2017. Garrison was sworn in on January 9, 2019. Garrison claimed that she had, despite ideological differences, supported Pressley's campaign for the House of Representatives with the knowledge that, if Pressley were elected, Garrison would have the opportunity to be Pressley's City Council successor by virtue of her own finish in the previous city council election.
Garrison differed ideologically from the rest of the city councilors. She was noted to be the only strong conservative on the Boston City Council. She was noted to be a strong supporter of then-president Donald Trump and an ardent backer of the Boston Police Department. Around the time she joined the Boston City Council, Garrison described herself as an "independent conservative". She once explained, "I'm basically a conservative, but I also have some liberal ideas," and also explained, "I am a conservative, I am independent also," calling herself "a Black conservative." In a separate instance, she described herself and her voter base as being "moderate to conservative". She described her views as more closely aligned with the Republican Party than the Democratic Party.
As a city councilor, Garrison supported reviving rent control in the city. In April 2019, she introduced a home rule petition for the city to seek state permission to reinstate rent control in the city. The petition was heavily criticized by many fellow city council members. She also voiced support for eviction control and price controls related to development. Garrison was supportive of the controversial "Operation Clean Sweep" effort by the police in August 2019 which saw 34 arrests in a two-day period in the so-called "Methadone Mile". Garrison proposed a pro-police resolution in the aftermath of Super Happy Fun America's 2019 "Straight Pride Parade" and unrest that occurred related to it. Garrison opposed a proposal by Councilor Michelle Wu to generate revenue by imposing fees for residential parking permits. While believing that planning and development needed to be "community based", Garrison dismissed a proposal by Councilor Wu to abolish the current Boston Planning and Development Agency as merely being a ploy for reelection by Wu.
In late-February 2019, Garrison proposed a measure to hold a hearing on the possibility of withholding city payments to the MBTA over the state of its service. At the time, the MBTA was proposing divisive fare increases. The measure was signed-onto by a majority of councilors. Councilor Michelle Wu had introduced a similar measure the year prior.
Boston City Councilors can invite local religious leaders to deliver the City Council's convocation. In her first turn to select the convocation, Garrison invited pastor and right-wing perennial candidate Roy Owens. Owens is vocally anti-LGBT.
Garrison was a candidate for re-election in the November 2019 election, but finished seventh in the general election field of eight candidates. In that election, she had urged voters to unseat the three other three sitting at-large city councilors (Michael F. Flaherty, Annissa Essaibi George, and Michelle Wu), and urged voters to "bullet vote" by casting a vote only for her in the at-large councilor column instead of voting for multiple (up to four) candidates.
In December 2019, the lame duck Garrison was one of only three city councilors to vote against a home rule petition requesting that the state allow the city to impose a real estate transfer tax.

## Personal life

Garrison is a transgender woman. After being outed by the Boston Herald in 1992, Garrison did not publicly discuss her gender identity until 2023, when she shared that she identifies as trans and had begun the process of socially and medically transitioning in the 1960s. Before 2023, despite it being public knowledge that she was transgender, Garrison avoided publicly discussing the topic of her being a transgender individual, and had not publicly identified herself as being transgender; merely identifying herself as a woman, without any further elaboration.
Garrison is known not to embrace the use of technology, remarking in 2018, "I don't do computers, I don't do technology."
Garrison is also seen as adverse to granting the news media access to herself, with Quincy Walters of WBUR writing in a 2018 profile,
   Garrison is suspicious of the media and rarely gives interviews. It's warranted. Back in 1992, a Boston Herald reporter confronted her with public records that indicated Garrison once went by a man's name. But Garrison has never identified as transgender. And some believe the public outing by the media contributed to her loss the next term.

## Electoral history
### Massachusetts House

1982 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Richard J. Rouse | 2,084 | 41.55 |
| | Democratic | Daniel M. Hart | 2,041 | 40.69 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 492 | 9.81 |
| | Democratic | Richard M. Rolak | 294 | 5.86 |
| | Democratic | Thomas R. Roffey | 35 | 0.70 |
| | Write-in | Other | 70 | 1.40 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 5,016 | 100 |
1986 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Richard J. Rouse (incumbent) | 2,396 | 64.22 |
| | Democratic | Michael G. Sylva | 853 | 22.86 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 482 | 12.92 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 3,731 | 100 |
1988 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Nelson Merced | 3,268 | 63.61 |
| | Independent | Althea Garrison | 1,836 | 35.73 |
| | Write-in | Other | 34 | 0.66 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 5,138 | 100 |
1990 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 28 | 100 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 28 | 100 |
1990 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Nelson Merced (incumbent) | 2,215 | 55.28 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 1,249 | 31.17 |
| | Independent | Philip K. Robertson Jr. | 543 | 13.55 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,007 | 100 |
1992 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 105 | 69.54 |
| | Republican | Gunnar Hexum | 46 | 30.46 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 151 | 100 |
1992 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 2,479 | 54.91 |
| | Democratic | Irene L. Roman | 2,031 | 44.98 |
| | Write-in | Other | 5 | 0.11 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,515 | 100 |
1994 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 135 | 100 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 135 | 100 |
1994 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Charlotte Golar Richie | 2,101 | 54.94 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison (incumbent) | 1,723 | 45.06 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 3,824 | 100 |
1996 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 68 | 100 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 68 | 100 |
1996 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Charlotte Golar Richie (incumbent) | 3,684 | 68.69 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 1,666 | 31.07 |
| | Write-in | Others | 13 | 0.24 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 5,363 | 100 |
1998 Massachusetts State House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Charlotte Golar Richie (incumbent) | 1,218 | 58.47 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 865 | 41.53 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 2,083 | 100 |
1999 Massachusetts State House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district special election Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Marie St. Fleur | 1,009 | 57.99 |
| | Democratic | Barry Lawton | 361 | 20.75 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 303 | 17.41 |
| | Democratic | Bernard Wheeler | 67 | 3.85 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,740 | 100 |
2000 Massachusetts State House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Marie St. Fleur (incumbent) | 4,466 | 73.51 |
| | Independent | Althea Garrison | 1,609 | 26.49 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 6,075 | 100 |
2006 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 65 | 91.55 |
| | Write-in | Others | 6 | 8.45 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 68 | 100 |
2006 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Marie St. Fleur (incumbent) | 5,110 | 83.35 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 999 | 16.29 |
| | Write-in | Others | 22 | 0.36 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 6,131 | 100 |
2010 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Carlos Henriquez | 719 | 35.42 |
| | Democratic | Barry Lawton | 678 | 33.40 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 400 | 19.70 |
| | Democratic | Roy A. Owens | 226 | 11.13 |
| | Write-in | Others | 7 | 0.35 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 2,030 | 100 |
2012 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Carlos Henriquez (incumbent) | 1,346 | 90.76 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 63 | 4.25 |
| | Write-in | Others | 74 | 4.99 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,483 | 100 |
2012 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Carlos Henriquez (incumbent) | 9,179 | 77.55 |
| | Independent | Althea Garrison | 2,564 | 21.66 |
| | Write-in | Others | 93 | 7.86 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 11,836 | 100 |
2014 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district special election Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Evandro Carvalho | 961 | 49.08 |
| | Democratic | Karen A. Charles-Peterson | 521 | 26.61 |
| | Democratic | Barry Lawton | 190 | 9.70 |
| | Democratic | Jennifer Anne Johnson | 151 | 7.71 |
| | Democratic | Roy A. Owens | 89 | 4.55 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 39 | 1.99 |
| | Write-in | Others | 7 | 0.36 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,958 | 100 |
2014 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district special election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Evandro Carvalho | 739 | 91.24 |
| | Write-in | Althea Garrison | 51 | 6.30 |
| | Write-in | Others | 20 | 2.47 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 810 | 100 |
2014 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Evandro Carvalho (incumbent) | 1,637 | 65.30 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 859 | 34.26 |
| | Write-in | Others | 11 | 0.44 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 2,507 | 100 |
2016 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 54 | 96.43 |
| | Write-in | Others | 2 | 3.57 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 56 | 100 |
2016 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Evandro Carvalho (incumbent) | 10,855 | 83.89 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 2,014 | 15.57 |
| | Write-in | Others | 70 | 0.54 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 12,939 | 100 |
2018 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Liz Miranda | 8,527 | 88.70 |
| | Independent | Althea Garrison | 1,053 | 10.95 |
| | Write-in | Others | 33 | 0.34 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 9,613 | 100 |
2022 Massachusetts House of Representatives 5th Suffolk Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Christopher J. Worrell | 1,667 | 41.50 |
| | Democratic | Danielson Tavares | 1,274 | 31.72 |
| | Democratic | Althea Garrison | 874 | 21.76 |
| | Write-in | Others | 13 | 0.32 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,017 | 100 |

### Massachusetts Senate

2002 Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk district special election Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 128 | 98.46 |
| | Write-in | Other | 2 | 0.15 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 130 | 100 |
2002 Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk district special election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Jack Hart | 4,632 | 95.47 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 217 | 4.47 |
| | Write-in | Other | 3 | 0.06 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,852 | 100 |
2002 Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Walter R. Campbell | 820 | 68.91 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 369 | 31.01 |
| | Write-in | Other | 1 | 0.08 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,190 | 100 |
2008 Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk district Republican primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Write-in | Althea Garrison | 1 | 0.89 |
| | Write-in | Other | 111 | 99.11 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 112 | 100 |
2008 Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Jack Hart (incumbent) | 9,355 | 98.21 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 23 | 0.24 |
| | Write-in | Other | 148 | 1.55 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 9,526 | 100 |

### Boston mayor

2001 Boston mayoral election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Thomas Menino (incumbent) | 31,715 | 73.37 | 68,011 | 76.06 |
| Peggy Davis-Mullen | 9,958 | 23.04 | 21,393 | 23.93 |
| Althea Garrison | 1,552 | 3.59 | | |

### Boston City Council

1983 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Michael J. McCormack (incumbent) | 52,315 | 12.3% | 87,143 | 16.0% |
| Christopher A. Iannella (incumbent) | 66,647 | 15.6% | 85,204 | 15.7% |
| Joseph M. Tierney (incumbent) | 62,850 | 14.7% | 82,600 | 15.2% |
| Dapper O'Neil (incumbent) | 64,410 | 15.1% | 79,086 | 14.6% |
| Terence P. McDermott (incumbent) | 61,436 | 14.4% | 77,096 | 14.2% |
| Jean Sullivan McKeigue | 48,265 | 11.3% | 73,064 | 13.4% |
| Willie Mae Allen | 21,369 | 5.0% | 32,556 | 6.0% |
| Althea Garrison | 19,908 | 4.7% | 26,564 | 4.9% |
| Joseph Mirisola | 14,914 | 3.5% | | |
| Leslie F. Payne | 14,199 | 3.3% | | |
1985 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Dapper O'Neil (incumbent) | 22,792 | 19.1% | 36,686 | 18.8% |
| Joseph M. Tierney (incumbent) | 17,014 | 14.3% | 34,427 | 17.6% |
| Christopher A. Iannella (incumbent) | 19,183 | 16.1% | 33,883 | 17.3% |
| Michael J. McCormack (incumbent) | 17,329 | 14.5% | 27,976 | 14.3% |
| Frederick C. Langone | 16,900 | 14.2% | 26,365 | 13.5% |
| Michael W. Kane | 10,018 | 8.4% | 17,175 | 8.8% |
| Willie Mae Allen | 6268 | 5.3% | 12,533 | 6.4% |
| Althea Garrison | 3565 | 3.0% | 6402 | 3.3% |
| Kenneth C. Davis | 2130 | 1.8% | | |
| John P. Scialdone | 1588 | 1.3% | | |
| Richard A. Black | 972 | 0.8% | | |
| Little L. Pittman | 808 | 0.7% | | |
| Edward P. Malik | 723 | 0.6% | | |
1987 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Dapper O'Neil (incumbent) | 29,052 | 16.3% | 47,817 | 17.0% |
| Christopher A. Iannella (incumbent) | 23,906 | 13.4% | 45,472 | 16.1% |
| Rosaria Salerno | 19,346 | 10.8% | 39,089 | 13.9% |
| Michael J. McCormack (incumbent) | 16,793 | 9.4% | 36,326 | 12.9% |
| Joseph W. Casper | 15,694 | 8.8% | 32,548 | 11.5% |
| Frederick C. Langone | 19,521 | 10.9% | 30,447 | 10.8% |
| Michael W. Kane | 13,678 | 7.7% | 27,573 | 9.8% |
| Stephen J. Murphy | 13,309 | 7.4% | 22,744 | 8.1% |
| Kevin A. McCluskey | 11,431 | 6.4% | | |
| Althea Garrison | 6669 | 3.7% | | |
| Edward T. Kelley | 5123 | 2.9% | | |
| David J. McKay | 4198 | 2.3% | | |
1989 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Dapper O'Neil (incumbent) | 21,764 | 17.2% | 40,106 | 17.6% |
| Christopher A. Iannella (incumbent) | 20,142 | 15.9% | 38,357 | 16.9% |
| Rosaria Salerno (incumbent) | 19,478 | 15.4% | 35,654 | 15.7% |
| Michael J. McCormack (incumbent) | 19,073 | 15.1% | 31,170 | 13.7% |
| John A. Nucci | 14,646 | 11.6% | 30,466 | 13.4% |
| John N. Flanagan | 13,676 | 10.8% | 22,359 | 9.8% |
| Joseph W. Casper | 10,103 | 8.0% | 18,069 | 7.9% |
| Althea Garrison | 5042 | 4.0% | 11,281 | 5.0% |
| Glenn Fiscus | 2365 | 1.9% | | |
1991 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Anthony Crayton | 836 | 18.7% | 3129 | 57.5% |
| Roy A. Owens | 974 | 21.8% | 2314 | 42.5% |
| Althea Garrison | 703 | 15.7% | | |
| Ben Haith | 691 | 15.4% | | |
| James A. West | 666 | 14.9% | | |
| Hattie Dudley | 395 | 8.8% | | |
| Natalie E. Carithers | 211 | 4.7% | | |
1995 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Gareth R. Saunders (incumbent) | 1262 | 55.4% | 2361 | 62.1% |
| Althea Garrison | 553 | 24.3% | 1441 | 37.9% |
| Roy A. Owens | 254 | 11.2% | | |
| Moses E. Wilson Jr. | 209 | 9.2% | | |
1997 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Gareth R. Saunders (incumbent) | 851 | 40.5% | 2278 | 61.4% |
| Althea Garrison | 360 | 17.1% | 1430 | 38.6% |
| Roy A. Owens | 349 | 16.6% | | |
| Anthony Crayton | 341 | 16.2% | | |
| Robert L. Terrell | 200 | 9.5% | | |
1999 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Chuck Turner | 1153 | 33.9% | 2419 | 58.4% |
| Tracy Litthcut | 590 | 17.3% | 1726 | 41.6% |
| Julio Henriquez | 339 | 10.0% | | |
| Roy A. Owens | 314 | 9.2% | | |
| Althea Garrison | 282 | 8.3% | | |
| Anthony Crayton | 255 | 7.5% | | |
| Hassan Ali Williams | 122 | 3.6% | | |
| Richard Masterson | 115 | 3.4% | | |
| Scotland Willis | 70 | 2.1% | | |
| Kenneth Yarbrough | 65 | 1.9% | | |
| Roger Garvin | 51 | 1.5% | | |
| Thelma Barros | 47 | 1.4% | | |
2003 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | 20,307 | 18.21 | 36,387 | 18.33 |
| Felix D. Arroyo (incumbent) | 14,379 | 12.89 | 34,685 | 17.48 |
| Maura Hennigan (incumbent) | 15,916 | 14.27 | 33,596 | 16.93 |
| Stephen J. Murphy (incumbent) | 17,597 | 15.78 | 30,510 | 15.37 |
| Patricia H. White | 16,439 | 14.74 | 29,649 | 14.94 |
| Matt O'Malley | 7,025 | 6.30 | 12,929 | 6.51 |
| Althea Garrison | 5,050 | 4.53 | 10,524 | 5.30 |
| Roy Owens | 4,356 | 3.91 | 10,204 | 5.14 |
| Jacquelyne Payne-Thompson | 2,723 | 2.44 | | |
| Phyllis Yetman Igoe | 1,940 | 1.74 | | |
| Edward Puglielli | 1,705 | 1.53 | | |
| Laura Garza | 1,604 | 1.44 | | |
| Arthur "Lucky" Craffey | 1,594 | 1.43 | | |
| Joseph Anthony Ureneck | 907 | 0.81 | | |
2005 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | 17,828 | 13.90 | 49,220 | 17.58 |
| Felix D. Arroyo (incumbent) | 15,690 | 12.23 | 43,533 | 15.55 |
| Sam Yoon | 13,165 | 10.27 | 41,891 | 14.96 |
| Stephen J. Murphy (incumbent) | 14,094 | 10.99 | 35,553 | 12.70 |
| John R. Connolly | 14,287 | 11.14 | 31,629 | 11.30 |
| Matt O'Malley | 12,070 | 9.41 | 28,318 | 10.12 |
| Patricia H. White | 12,895 | 10.05 | 26,999 | 9.64 |
| Edward M. Flynn | 11,092 | 8.65 | 21,778 | 7.78 |
| Althea Garrison | 4824 | 3.76 | | |
| Kevin R. Mccrea | 3661 | 2.85 | | |
| Roy Owens | 3622 | 2.82 | | |
| Laura Garza | 1807 | 1.41 | | |
| Gregory Joseph O'Connell | 1174 | 0.92 | | |
| Martin J. Hogan | 1031 | 0.80 | | |
| Joseph Ready | 675 | 0.53 | | |
| Joseph Ureneck | 17† | 0.01 | 133† | 0.05 |
| Gibran Rivera | 17† | 0.01 | | |
| all others | 297 | 0.23 | 874 | 0.31 |
† write-in votes
2009 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Chuck Turner (incumbent) | 3,648 | 52.57 | 5,521 | 59.83 |
| Carlos Henriquez | 1,659 | 23.91 | 3,644 | 39.49 |
| Althea Garrison | 995 | 14.34 | | |
| Roy Owens | 610 | 8.79 | | |
2011 Boston City Council district 7 special election :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Tito Jackson | Tito Jackson | 2,829 | 81.98 |
| Cornell Mills | Cornell Mills | 557 | 16.14 |
| Althea Garrison (write-in) | Althea Garrison (write-in) | 46 | 1.33 |
| all others | all others | 19 | 0.55 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 3,451 | 100 |
2011 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Tito Jackson (incumbent) | 1,876 | 76.07 | 4,818 | 84.35 |
| Sheneal Parker | 273 | 11.07 | 799 | 13.99 |
| Althea Garrison | 216 | 8.76 | 47† | 0.82 |
| Roy Owens | 85 | 3.45 | | |
| all others | 16† | 0.65 | 48† | 0.84 |
| Total | 2,466 | 100 | 5,712 | 100 |
† write-in votes
2013 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Ayanna Pressley (incumbent) | 42,915 | 16.71 | 60,799 | 18.30 |
| Michelle Wu | 29,384 | 11.44 | 59,741 | 17.98 |
| Michael F. Flaherty | 39,904 | 15.54 | 55,104 | 16.59 |
| Stephen J. Murphy (incumbent) | 31,728 | 12.35 | 44,993 | 13.54 |
| Annissa Essaibi George | 12,244 | 4.77 | 30,538 | 9.19 |
| Jeffrey Michael Ross | 13,939 | 5.43 | 28,879 | 8.69 |
| Martin J. Keogh | 15,743 | 6.13 | 26,500 | 7.98 |
| Jack F. Kelly III | 11,909 | 4.64 | 23,967 | 7.22 |
| Catherine M. O'Neill | 10,952 | 4.26 | | |
| Althea Garrison | 10,268 | 4.00 | | |
| Ramon Soto | 9928 | 3.87 | | |
| Philip Arthur Frattaroli | 5832 | 2.27 | | |
| Gareth R. Saunders | 5363 | 2.09 | | |
| Christopher J. Conroy | 3433 | 1.34 | | |
| Seamus M. Whelan | 3118 | 1.21 | | |
| Francisco L. White | 2745 | 1.07 | | |
| Douglas D. Wohn | 2382 | 0.93 | | |
| Frank John Addivinola Jr. | 2240 | 0.87 | | |
| Keith B. Kenyon | 1950 | 0.76 | | |
| Jamarhl Crawford | 21† | 0.01 | | |
| all others | 832 | 0.32 | 1658 | 0.50 |
† write-in votes
2015 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidates | Preliminary Election | Preliminary Election | General Election | General Election |
| Candidates | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Tito Jackson (incumbent) | 1409 | 66.40 | 2983 | 66.64 |
| Charles L. Clemons Jr. | 381 | 17.95 | 1444 | 32.26 |
| Haywood Fennell Sr. | 104 | 4.90 | | |
| Althea Garrison | 98 | 4.62 | 16† | 0.36 |
| Roy Owens | 74 | 3.49 | | |
| Kevin A. Dwire | 34 | 1.60 | | |
| all others | 22 | 1.04 | 33 | 0.74 |
† write-in votes
2017 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Michelle Wu (incumbent) | Michelle Wu (incumbent) | 65,040 | 24.47 |
| Ayanna Pressley (incumbent) | Ayanna Pressley (incumbent) | 57,520 | 21.64 |
| Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | 51,673 | 19.44 |
| Annissa Essaibi George (incumbent) | Annissa Essaibi George (incumbent) | 45,564 | 17.14 |
| Althea Garrison | Althea Garrison | 18,253 | 6.87 |
| Domingos Darosa | Domingos Darosa | 11,647 | 4.38 |
| William A. King | William A. King | 8,773 | 3.30 |
| Pat Payaso | Pat Payaso | 6,124 | 2.30 |
| all others | all others | 1,230 | 0.46 |
2019 Boston at-large City Council election :
| Candidate | Primary election | Primary election | General election | General election |
| Candidate | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Michelle Wu (incumbent) | 26,622 | 19.41 | 41,664 | 20.73 |
| Annissa Essaibi George (incumbent) | 18,993 | 13.85 | 34,109 | 16.97 |
| Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | 18,766 | 13.68 | 33,284 | 16.56 |
| Julia Mejia | 10,799 | 7.87 | 22,492 | 11.19 |
| Alejandra Nicole St. Guillen | 11,910 | 8.68 | 22,491 | 11.19 |
| Erin J. Murphy | 9,385 | 6.84 | 16,867 | 8.39 |
| Althea Garrison (incumbent) | 9,720 | 7.09 | 16,189 | 8.05 |
| David Halbert | 6,354 | 4.76 | 13,214 | 6.57 |
| Martin Marty Keogh | 6,246 | 4.55 | | |
| Jeffrey Michael Ross | 5,078 | 3.70 | | |
| Priscilla E. Flint-Banks | 4,094 | 2.98 | | |
| Domingos DaRosa | 2,840 | 2.07 | | |
| Michel Denis | 2,108 | 1.54 | | |
| William A. King | 1,809 | 1.32 | | |
| Herb Alexander Lozano | 1,510 | 1.10 | | |
| all others | 766 | 0.56 | 704 | 0.35 |
2021 Boston City Council at-large election :
| Candidate | Primary election | Primary election | General election | General election |
| Candidate | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Michael F. Flaherty (incumbent) | 41,509 | 15.00 | 62,602 | 17.42 |
| Julia Mejia (incumbent) | 38,919 | 14.07 | 62,058 | 17.27 |
| Ruthzee Louijeune | 33,546 | 12.12 | 54,898 | 15.28 |
| Erin J. Murphy | 22,938 | 8.29 | 43,076 | 11.99 |
| David Halbert | 17,012 | 6.15 | 42,765 | 11.90 |
| Carla B. Monteiro | 18,911 | 6.83 | 39,876 | 11.10 |
| Bridget M. Nee-Walsh | 15,191 | 5.49 | 27,591 | 7.68 |
| Althea Garrison | 16,906 | 6.11 | 25,078 | 6.98 |
| Kelly F. Bates | 12787 | 4.62 | | |
| Alexander J. Gray | 11,320 | 4.09 | | |
| Jon M. Spillane | 11,217 | 4.05 | | |
| Said A. Abdikarim | 7,767 | 2.81 | | |
| Domingos Darosa | 7,011 | 2.53 | | |
| Donnie Dionico Palmer Jr. | 6,861 | 2.48 | | |
| Roy A. Owens Sr. | 5,265 | 1.90 | | |
| James Rignald Colimon | 4,693 | 1.70 | | |
| Nick Vance | 3,968 | 1.43 | | |
| Write-ins | 873 | 0.32 | 1,350 | 0.38 |
2023 Boston City Council district 7 election :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Tania Fernandes Anderson (incumbent) | Tania Fernandes Anderson (incumbent) | 3,710 | 70.36 |
| Althea Garrison | Althea Garrison | 1,500 | 28.45 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 63 | 1.19 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 5,273 | 100 |

### Suffolk County Register of Probate

2020 Suffolk County Register of Probate election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Felix D. Arroyo (incumbent) | 207,828 | 76.76 |
| | Independent | Melissa Tyler | 31,043 | 11.47 |
| | Independent | Althea Garrison | 30,303 | 11.19 |
| | Write-in | Other | 1,565 | 0.58 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 270,739 | 100 |

### Republican State Committee Woman

1996 Massachusetts Republican State Committee Woman 1st Suffolk district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Suzananne Ianella | 1,140 | 63.58 |
| | Republican | George B. Gibbons | 324 | 18.07 |
| | Republican | Althea Garrison | 323 | 18.02 |
| | Write-in | Others | 6 | 0.34 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,793 | 100 |