| Election Name: | 1853–1854 Boston mayoral election |
| Type: | Presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1852 Boston mayoral election |
| Previous Year: | 1852 |
| Election Date: | Dec. 12, 1853 (1st vote) Dec. 27, 1853 (2nd vote) Jan. 9, 1854 (3rd vote) |
| Next Election: | December 1854 Boston mayoral election |
| Next Year: | December 1854 |
| Mayor | |
| Before Election: | Benjamin Seaver |
| Before Party: | Whig Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Jerome V. C. Smith |
| 1Blank: | First vote |
| 2Blank: | Second vote |
| 3Blank: | Third vote |
| Image1: | Jerome V. C. Smith by E. Billings 5210004 015 014 (3x4a).jpg |
| Candidate1: | Jerome V. C. Smith |
| Party1: | Citizens Union Party |
| Colour1: | C0C0C0 |
| 1Data1: | 4,690 35.97% |
| 2Data1: | 6,077 49.94% |
| 3Data1: | 6,840 56.59% |
| Candidate2: | Benjamin Seaver |
| Party2: | Whig Party (United States) |
| 1Data2: | 5,651 43.34% |
| 2Data2: | Did not contest |
| 3Data2: | Did not contest |
| Image3: | File:John P. Bigelow 5210004 015 012 (3x4).jpg |
| Candidate3: | John P. Bigelow |
| Party3: | Whig Party (United States) |
| 1Data3: | Did not contest |
| 2Data3: | 4,489 36.89% |
| 3Data3: | Did not contest |
| Candidate4: | John H. Wilkins |
| Party4: | Whig Party (United States) |
| 1Data4: | Did not contest |
| 2Data4: | Did not contest |
| 3Data4: | 3,171 26.23% |
| Candidate5: | Jacob Sleeper |
| Colour5: | C0C0C0 |
| Party5: | Young Men's League |
| 1Data5: | 2,097 16.08% |
| 2Data5: | 775 6.37% |
| 3Data5: | Did not contest |
| Candidate6: | James Whiting |
| Colour6: | C0C0C0 |
| Party6: | Bay State Club and Liquor Union |
| 1Data6: | Did not contest |
| 2Data6: | Did not contest |
| 3Data6: | 1,730 14.31% |
| Candidate7: | Aaron Hobart |
| Party7: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| 1Data7: | Did not contest |
| 2Data7: | 748 6.15% |
| 3Data7: | 282 2.33% |
The Boston mayoral election of 1853–1854 saw the election of Citizens Union Party nominee Jerome V. C. Smith. The election took three votes, as no candidate secured the needed majority in the first two attempts. Incumbent Whig mayor Benjamin Seaver had run for reelection as his party’s nominee in the first vote, but opted not to compete in the second or third votes.
It was the sixth and final Boston mayoral election to require multiple general election attempts before a winner could be determined. The previous elections where this had occurred were the 1822, 1828, 1831, 1844–45, and 1851 mayoral elections.
After he failed to win a majority in the first vote, Mayor Seaver refused to again run in the second vote. After this, the city's Whig Party committee nominated former mayor Josiah Quincy III, who declined. They then nominated Thomas Coffin Amory, who also declined. They then nominated former mayor John P. Bigelow. The Democratic Party nominated Aaron Hobart.[2] As with the first vote, no winner was elected as no candidate won a majority share of the vote. Jerome V. C. Smith fell short of a majority by a mere nine votes.[3]
Citizens Union Party nominee Jerome V. C. Smith was elected after winning a majority in the third vote.
In the third vote, John H. Wilkins replaced Bigelow as there Whig Party's nominee.
| Vote round | Citizens Union Party | Young Men's League | Bay State Club and Liquor Union | Scattering | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Nominee | % | Nominee | % | % | |
| 1st | Benjamin Seaver (incumbent) | 43.34 | colspan=2 | 35.97 | 16.08 | rowspan=2 colspan=2 | 0.03 | ||||
| 2nd | 36.89 | 6.15 | 49.94 | 6.37 | 6.49 | ||||||
| 3rd | John H. Wilkins | 26.23 | 2.33 | 56.59 | colspan=2 | James Whiting | 14.31 | 0.54 | |||