Mayor McDonough

Mayor McDonough, unit designation M7-62, is the mayor of Diamond City and a secret Institute agent in 2287.

Background
Ever since his election and inauguration into office, Mayor McDonough has been head of the city council for several years. He was born in Boston in a waterside house to Patrick and Martha McDonough and had a brother, John. After the death of his parents, he and his younger brother moved to Diamond City. In 2282, McDonough was voted into office by fear-mongering residents opposing the ghoul residents in the city. He promised to expel them from Diamond City as part of his anti-ghoul "Mankind for McDonough" platform, which ultimately won him the election. After his election, ghouls were prohibited in the city.

Following the activation of the ordinance, McDonough entered into a feud with his brother John over the rights of ghouls in Diamond City. John attempted to persuade him to stand down, eventually attempting to rescue the majority of the city's ghoul population from being arrested when the efforts proved unsuccessful. The feud resulted in the departure of John McDonough from Diamond City, with the eviction of the city's ghoul residents following soon after. The refugees, now banished out into the wastes, were forced to emigrate to outlying communities, a few had joined up with John, eventually settling down in Goodneighbor.

Mayor McDonough had secretly been under the observation of Institute agents for several years. At some point, the organization had sent operatives to kidnap the human McDonough and replace him with a Generation-3 synth duplicate, unit designation M7-62. Under the guise of the mayor of Diamond City, the synth has been carrying out a mission to infiltrate the city and its inhabitants, who are oblivious to his true nature as an Institute agent. The synthetic mayor took efforts to conceal his secret allegiance to the scientific community from his people, even though an observant journalist, Piper Wright had caught a whiff of his plans and published the information in a news story, titled "The Synthetic Truth." Piper has gotten on the bad side of the mayor as a result of her sensationalizing rumors of him being a synth, which has led to her receiving a temporary ban from city limits.

McDonough has been a popular mayor among merchants and the wealthy upper stands residents, due to his emphasis on keeping Diamond City prosperous and safe, but something of a conflicted figure among the lower field population due to the circumstances of his election and his refusal to investigate the recent spate of kidnappings allegedly orchestrated by the Institute, which has sparked mass paranoia within the community.

The first time entering Diamond City, Mayor McDonough will give a speech to a small group of residents in front of the Wall where he proclaims "I am NOT a synth" and shortly after, praises the Wall in response to Piper's reporting.

Quests

 * Jewel of the Commonwealth: McDonough is first met in the entrance to Diamond City and gets into an argument with Piper Wright. If the Sole Survivor passes a Speech check, McDonough can direct them to Valentine Detective Agency.
 * Getting a Clue: McDonough can be convinced to hand over the key to Kellogg's house.
 * Political Leanings: The Sole Survivor must obtain McDonough's report and deliver it to Justin Ayo.
 * In Sheep's Clothing: McDonough is confronted in his office after it's revealed that he is a synth and is holding Geneva hostage. The Sole Survivor can convince him with a medium Speech check to release his hostage to prevent her from being harmed.

Appearances
Mayor McDonough appears only in Fallout 4.

Behind the scenes

 * The character of McDonough was inspired by real-life Boston mayor James Michael Curley, who served four terms as mayor in the 20th century. He was known as a colorfully corrupt figure in Boston politics, yet still incredibly popular among the working class.


 * Piper's interactions with Mayor McDonough seem to be inspired by Bob Woodward's and Carl Bernstein's reporting of the Watergate scandal which eventually led to the resignation of President Nixon. This is further lampshaded by Mayor McDonough's "I Am Not a Synth" speech.