🗳️ The results are in: Trump won.

It’s Wednesday, Boston.

🍩 Before we start talking politics … want a free doughnut? Seriously, free doughnut Wednesdays are officially back for Dunkin’ members with the purchase of a bev through Dec. 31. And TBH, we could probably all use one today.

👀 What’s on tap today:

• This year’s Rockefeller tree is a local

• A welcome election distraction

• Your first dog mayor is …

Up first…

ELECTION 2024

And the winners are …

The results are (mostly) in. Here's where the 2024 Election results stand as of Wednesday morning.

NATIONAL RESULTS

🗳️ And the next President of the United States is … Donald Trump. Trump was elected the 47th President of the United States. The race was called Wednesday morning, and it’s a major defeat to VP Kamala Harris. Trump cleaned up in the battleground states, winning Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Wisconsin (and is on track to sweep the others), an extraordinary comeback given the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection, his felony convictions, and survival of two assassination attempts. You can keep up with the latest here. 

STATEWIDE RACES

💁‍♀️ Elizabeth Warren kept her seat in the Senate. In a not-so-surprising outcome, Warren beat out challenger John Deaton in a speedily-called race to secure her third term.

🏘️ As for the contested House of Representatives races … Here in Boston, Democrat Stephen Lynch held onto his seat in the 8th congressional district. Meanwhile, Richard Neal took home the W in the 1st district, James McGovern in the 2nd, and Bill Keating in the 9th.

BALLOT QUESTIONS

🔍 Question 1 about auditing the legislature is a YES. The least spicy ballot question, which will allow the state auditor to look into Beacon Hill’s non-core functions like purchasing practices or cybersecurity norms, passed with flying colors. Which will probably make most of our readers happy given 84% said they were leaning toward voting “yes.”

📝 Question 2 about nixing the MCAS grad requirement is a YES. With a comfortable margin, “Yes” on 2 passed, meaning the state will drop a passing MCAS grade as a high school graduation requirement. B-Side readers were mixed on this Q, with 49% saying there were leaning toward “no.”

🚗 Question 3 about rideshare driver unionization is LEANING YES. The race technically hasn’t been called yet, but the “yes” camp currently has 54% of the vote with 88% reporting. Reminder: If this passes, rideshare divers will gain the right to unionize. 60% of B-Siders said they were leaning toward voting “yes.” Keep tabs on the latest results here.

🍄 Question 4 about legalizing psychedelics is a NO. The tally was somewhat close, but voters ultimately decided against the measure, which would have legalized some psychedelics and created psychedelic therapy centers across the state. B-Siders disagreed with the outcome, with 63% of readers telling us they were leaning toward voting “yes.”

💸 Question 5 about raising the tipped minimum wage is a NO. As for the spiciest ballot Q in Massachusetts, voters gave a thumbs down to raising the tipped worker minimum wage from $6.75 an hour to $15 (with a healthy margin to boot). 54% of B-Siders said they were leaning toward the “no” camp heading into Election Day.

🤔 But wait, there’s more! You can check in on all the other local results here.

QUICK QUESTION

🥹 Vibe check: How’s everyone doing right now? 

TOGETHER WITH AREA FOUR AND DOORDASH

All-day cafe 🤝 wood-fired pizza

🍕Get you a restaurant that can do both. Area Four in Kendall Square is serving up perfectly charred wood-fired pizzas — frequented even by former President Obama — and espressos that are keeping the Harvard and MIT crowd awake and satisfied. Whether you’re fueling up with a coffee at A4 Cafe or enjoying dinner, you’re in for a flavor explosion that (thanks to DoorDash) you can enjoy from your couch at any time. 

CITY

Quick & dirty headlines

Note: In an effort to give you a break from election chatter, we’re keeping today’s headlines light. Enjoy.

🎄 This year’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is a local. More specifically, a West Stockbridgian. Yup, NYC’s iconic Christmas tree hails from West Stockbridge, a teeny town in Western Mass. The 67-year-old Norway spruce was cut down last week and will make the 140-mile voyage to New York before getting all spruced up (sorry) and lit on live TV Dec. 4. But before it left, locals and tourists alike flocked to the town to snap pics and give the soon-to-be celebri-tree a proper sendoff.

💇🏽 Now we know why Jayson Tatum wears a headband. Hint: It’s kind of adorable. After yet another W Monday night, Tatum let us in on a little secret between him and teammate Derrick White: their “headband agreement.” On any “random day,” one of them can walk in and say they’re both wearing headbands, and the other has to agree. On Monday, Tatum made the call, so he’ll be waiting on White for the next time. Ah, boy friendship. We’ll never get it.

☕ This might be the chillest cafe in Greater Boston. The couple behind Iggy’s, Cambridge’s iconic bread empire, have applied their talents to a new cafe in Huron Village called Imagine. The Globe calls the vibes “Middle Earth meets Santa Fe” (which is a compliment), with a small menu of pastries, coffee, and “healing drinks.” Meanwhile, for a decidedly less zen vibe, Harpoon’s Holly Jolly Bar pop-up is slated to open Nov. 21. The halls will be decked, the drinks will be seasonal, and right now, the tickets are available at an early-bird discount. 

📺 So you’re still thinking about the election? We can’t blame you. But we have one last-ditch effort to give you something else to do. The Globe dropped a list of shows and movies to watch to break the doomscrolling. For comfort TV, try “Parks and Recreation” or “Abbott Elementary.” For a solid binge-watch, go for “Severance” or “The Diplomat.” For movies, try “His Three Daughters” or “Hit Man.”

GIVEAWAY

Together with Selfup

Enter to win 2 Gift Cards for a "Romantic Italian Date Night" Cooking Class at Selfup. To enter, just refer a friend and have them accept your invite by the end of the day on Nov 6. If you have already referred a friend to B-Side (and they’ve accepted), you're eligible! Full details below*

18+. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Limit one entry per person. See Official Rules & an additional entry option here.

ONE LAST THING

Your new dog mayor is …

Wait! Before you go, we have one last election result for you. The winner of the Seaport’s first-ever dog mayor election. 

And the winner is … all of them. That’s right, we now have not one, not two, but five new dog mayors. 

Voting was officially supposed to close on Nov. 1, but according to the Seaport, “The incredible enthusiasm for all the candidates led to a surge of votes on the last day, causing the platform to shut down early. There were also some suspicious votes that made final verification challenging.”

So, in keeping with the wholesome spirit of the election, they decided to chalk it up to a five-way tie, “so all five candidates who have captured hearts will be honored.” 

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🐶 Thanks for reading! Dog election fraud was not on my 2024 bingo card. But hey, the more dog mayors in our life, the better, as far as we’re concerned. 

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsors, Area Four and DoorDash, for supporting local journalism and serving up some of the best pizza North of the Charles. 

🗳️ The results are in: 87% of B-Siders say they voted for Kamala Harris in this election, with 6% choosing Donald Trump and 7% either not voting or picking a third-party candidate. One reader said: “Somehow it doesn’t surprise me that at the time I’m submitting this, 88% of readers of a Boston newsletter are Kamala voters, including me!” You were only one point off.

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