Matthew Joseph O'Malley is an American politician and businessman who served six terms a member of the Boston City Council.

"[1] His professional political experience began in managing the campaign for Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea Cabral in 2004, the first female in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts history to hold the position.

O'Malley also served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for Suffolk County, where he worked to implement numerous crime prevention initiatives.

Additionally, O'Malley spent some time working as a political consultant for both the Steven Grossman and Stephen Pagliuca campaigns respectively.

O'Malley pushed for the expansion of a drug drop off program in Boston as well as the creation of a Silver Alert system for citizens with Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive impairments.

[citation needed] In December 2012, the City Council passed an ordinance authored by O'Malley to greatly increase the scope and amount of inspections made to rental properties in Boston.

[7][8] This still was one shy of the needed majority, as councilor-elect Wu had not committed her support to him (despite being considered a part of the incoming council's liberal wing that had otherwise gotten behind his candidacy).

After Jackson failed, Ayanna Pressley (another member of the council's liberal wing) ran a last-minute challenge against Linehan.

In the summer of 2015, with help from IMPACT Melanoma and Make Big Change (MBC), dispensers were installed and have since inspired cities around the country to do the same.

Earlier that year, O'Malley passed an ordinance dubbed the "Puppy Mill Bill," that would prohibit pet shops in Boston from selling dogs, cats or rabbits and would prevent animal sales in public parks and on city streets.

As a result, Boston joined more than 120 municipalities that have banned the sale of commercially bred puppies and kittens from pet shops.

[19] Starting in 2017, O'Malley began hosting a podcast called, the "O'Pod," where he interviews fellow elected officials, city workers, notable people, his staff, family, and friends.

In 2019, O'Malley and fellow councilor Andrea Campbell proposed the idea of a vacancy tax on residential and commercial properties that have been abandoned.

[25] In December 2019, the Boston City Council passed an ordinance that O'Malley had introduced with Michelle Wu that protects local wetlands and promote adaption to climate change.

[33] In October 2021, O'Malley voted against legislation that was passed by the City Council which restricted the use of rubber bullets, tear gas, and pepper spray by the Boston Police Department.

[35][36] For years, joined by fellow council members Michelle Wu and Lydia Edwards, O'Malley had pushed to have the city divest its financial resources from fossil fuels.

[37][38] In December 2020, O'Malley announced that he would not seek re-election in the 2021 Boston City Council election,[39] making his sixth term his final.