By Iris Moore
BU News Service

John Barros and supporters waited for the results of Boston’s mayoral preliminary election on Tuesday night at Restaurante Cesaria in Dorchester. When the big-screen television confirmed Barros’ loss to Martin Walsh and John Connolly, the party did anything but end. Instead, it started.

Between the signing and dancing it was hard to tell whether Barros had earned a spot in the November election. People in the room smiled and laughed as they sat together for one shared reason—to support Barros.

The positive atmosphere was contagious. One supporter stood on a chair and chanted, “we won the fight. We did our part.”

When Barros reached the podium with his wife and two sons, he paused, looked around the room, and smiled.

“We won this,” he said. “We changed the conversation in Boston. We changed politics in Boston,” he added.

Barros’ expressed gratitude throughout his concession speech, saying, “there are way too many people to thank. This is the best team in Boston.”

Starting at 6:00 a.m., supporters of Barros went door to door encouraging people to vote.

“Canvassing has made a difference in this campaign. It makes your interaction with voters more personal,” said Lisa (De Santos) Barros, the candidate’s sister.

According to unofficial results, Barros won 9,138 votes, or about 8.10% of votes cast.

After giving thanks to his supporters, Barros gave thanks to the city of Boston and the 11 other candidates for making this a civil race.

With a campaign focused closely on issues of public education and affordable housing, Barros stressed the importance of November’s final election. He acknowledged that although the race has ended for him, the race for Boston’s next mayor continues.

“Our involvement should not end here. We need to make sure we pick a leader that will lead us the right way,” said Barros.

According to Barros and supporters, the end of his political career is far from near. “I’m not going anywhere,” he said.

“This is just the beginning,” repeated Tome Barros, the candidate’s first cousin.

Domingas Amado of Cape Verde said she wasn’t worried about what Barros will do next. After knowing Barros for 15 years, she was confident he would find something else soon enough.