The opinions expressed below are those of Jon Keller, not those of WBZ, CBS News or Paramount Global.
BOSTON — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has repeatedly said she plans to seek a second term next year. But there are new signs of serious competition.
Boston City Councilman Ed Flynn spread rumors in early May about a run for mayor. But in a WBZ interview on Wednesday, a different tune.
“I didn’t focus on it. I focused on my job as a city council member,” Flynn said. But when asked if that meant he left the door open, Flynn replied, “That’s right.”
CBS Boston
And he’s not the only one. Jorge Mendoza Iturraldea political newcomer from the North End says he’s running for office, and better-known philanthropist Josh Kraft of the famous football family is exploring the idea.
What is happening? We asked Flynn, “Are we safer today than, say, 2021, when Mayor Wu took office?”
“The public safety and quality of life issues are significant, they are increasing, so residents do not feel the situation has been resolved,” he said.
Polls show strong support for Mayor Wu
The Boston Policy Institute’s most recent poll showed Mayor Wu with a strong approval rating, with public safety and the economy viewed positively. But, says BPI director Greg Maynard, “people wanted to see improvements in the cost of housing, in public transportation, in public education and in the city’s infrastructure. The city is dealing with a lot of different issues, and the board really needs to keep a lot of different balls in the air.”
“I am concerned about public safety in our schools,” Flynn said. “I am also concerned about the lack of academic progress in many of our schools and the high rates of absenteeism.”
And false starts in the mayor’s school construction policy have certainly disappointed the vast majority who want change.
To top it all off, it’s a difficult environment to try to be a popular politician. “In the 2021 election and then the 2023 election, we saw many other mayors in Massachusetts decide not to run for re-election,” Maynard noted.
Wu has tried to quell speculation about not running. But keep in mind that at this point, four years ago, then-Mayor Marty Walsh was fully expected to seek a third term. (He instead left to take a job in the Biden Cabinet.)
And being mayor is a tough job. It was never realistic to expect Wu to quickly realize all the big ideas she set out to work on.
Could impatient residents decide to give someone else a try? It wouldn’t be the first time.
Jon Keller
