City Councilor Mike Ross Running for Mayor
District 8 City Councilor Mike Ross announced his candidacy for Boston mayor on Thursday. “This week, our Red Sox returned for their home opener, providing Bostonians with a surge of hope, optimism and renewal. Every year on Opening Day, I think back to 13 years ago, during my earliest days as a city councilor, when a small group of us stood together against powerful forces to save Fenway Park. All of Boston won that fight and look at the neighborhood today,” Ross wrote via a new website for his mayoral candidacy. “Today, in that same spirit of community activism and determination to continue building a better Boston, I am announcing that I will be getting into the race for mayor,” added Ross. First elected in 1999, he has represented Back Bay, Beacon Hill, West End, Fenway, Kenmore Square, Audubon Circle, and Mission Hill. Ross, whose father is a Holocaust survivor, and mother is a 71-year-old openly gay woman, tipped his hat to Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, “And it was Tom Menino who taught me long ago that the business of public service is, at its heart, about helping people. For many Bostonians, he is the only mayor they’ve ever known. My service as city council president was a partnership with Mayor Menino that I will always be proud of.” Ross joins fellow city councilors John Connolly, Felix Arroyo and Rob Consalvo, as announced candidates for mayor. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Felix Arroyo Kicks Off Campaign for Mayor
Standing in front of a wall lined with supporters, another city councilor announced he would be running for mayor Tuesday morning. City Councilor Felix G. Arroyo officially entered his name into the race at a press conference from SEIU Local 615 Tuesday morning. If elected, Arroyo, who lives in Jamaica Plain, would be Boston’s first Latino mayor. Arroyo answered a few questions from the media, including one about his campaign’s approach. “I will have the strongest grassroots campaign, powered by committed volunteers and funded by small donors, that’s…the only way that I would want to win, and that’s exactly how I will govern,” he said. Arroyo has been an organizer advocating for workers’ rights at SEIU 16. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Who’s Running for Mayor?
The low rumble you hear off in the distance isn’t thunder, it’s the stampede of Boston politicos jockeying for a mayoral run. With Tom Menino officially out of the next election, the thought of replacing him has many of Boston’s biggest political players lining up for a shot at the big chair. So far, it’s all talk—Candidates can’t apply for nomination papers until April 17, and have until May 21 to file the official paperwork. But it’s hard to blame anyone for jumping early. The Boston mayorship has rarely changed hands in recent decades. Three men—Menino, Ray Flynn and Kevin White—have run the city for the last 45 years. By comparison, there have been five popes in the same time period. A non-incumbent election is a very rare opportunity. We’ve compiled the latest on the potential candidates to keep you abreast of the latest on who’s in, who’s out who’s playing coy when it comes to the upcoming mayoral election. Here’s how the field stands as of 11 a.m. Friday, April 5. Did we miss anyone? Is there anyone left to miss? Tell us in the comments with a link to their latest statement or quote and we’ll add it to the chart! Who’s in (meaning they have announced they will run) John Connolly, city councilor Dan Conley, Suffolk County district attorney Marty Walsh, state representative William Dorcena, community activist Charles Clemmons, TOUCH 106.1 FM co-founder Rob Consalvo, city councilor Who’s openly discussing a run Felix Arroyo, city councilor Mike Ross, city councilor Who’s undecided/Not saying anything just yet Ayanna Pressley, city councilor Stephen Murphy, city council president Charles Yancey, city councilor Maura Hennigan, Suffolk County criminal court clerk Jeffrey Sanchez, state representative Who’s out (meaning they have publicly said they will not run for mayor) Tito Jackson, city councilor Sonia Chang-Diaz, state senator Matt O’Malley, city councilor Bill Linehan, city councilor Russell Holmes, state representative Paul Grogan, Boston Foundation president Andrea Cabral, Massachusetts Public Safety Secretary James Rooney, Massachusetts Convention Center Authority executive director South End Patch
District Attorney Conley Announces Bid for Mayor
In a statement sent to the press, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley declared his candidacy for mayor on Wednesday afternoon. “Boston is a great city, and with the right leadership and vision, its best days are still ahead,” his statement said. “So today I am officially declaring that I am a candidate for Mayor of Boston.” In his announcement, Conley said Boston needs to find a balance between the poor and vulnerable, middle class families, and economic hope and mobility, all while staying transparent and accountable. “Boston can only reach its full promise and potential when every one of its residents has a fair chance to reach theirs,” he said. “I intend to put my heart and soul (and several pairs of shoes) into this campaign.” Read Conley’s full announcement here: Boston is a great city, and with the right leadership and vision, its best days are still ahead. So today I am officially declaring that I am a candidate for Mayor of Boston. My entire career has been dedicated to giving voice to the voiceless and hope to the most poor and vulnerable among us. Boston needs to be a city where long-time residents and those fixed on incomes can feel secure, and where middle class families aren’t priced out. It means making Boston a place where younger residents can start careers and families, and where our poorest neighbors can find real economic hope and mobility. To make Boston the city we want it to be requires a mayor who can make tough decisions, even when they offend powerful interests and upset the status quo. It’s going to require a mayor who leads with integrity, for whom transparency is a way of doing business and not just a buzzword, and who will ensure that city government is responsive and accountable to the people it serves. We’ll need a mayor who can manage and innovate in good times and tough times. We’ll need a mayor who has worked with residents and businesses in every neighborhood and has built partnerships with every conceivable constituency. Finally, we need a mayor who recognizes Boston as a city defined not by old divisions and superficial differences but by our shared hopes and aspirations. I’ve done these things. These qualities are the hallmarks of my career and the leadership I will bring to the Mayor’s office. So if you are like me and love this city and want to see it live up to its full promise and potential, then my campaign is your campaign. Boston can only reach its full promise and potential when every one of its residents has a fair chance to […]
WATCH: Mayor Menino Announces His Retirement
After 20 years of serving as mayor of Boston, Mayor Thomas M. Menino officially announced on Thursday he would not seek re-election. Menino, who after two decades is the city’s longest-serving mayor, announced his decision in front of a large crowd of family, friends and supporters at Faneuil Hall’s Great Hall. “I am here with the people I love, to tell the city I love, that I will leave the job that I love,” Menino said. “I can run, I can win, and I can lead, but not ‘in-the-neighborhoods-all-the-time,’ as I like,” he said. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Boston Mayor Tom Menino Not Running for Re-Election
Speculation last night that Boston Mayor Tom Menino would announce Thursday he was not running for re-election was confirmed this morning. Menino, calling into the Fox 25 Morning News this morning, confirmed he will not be seeking a sixth term in office. He told Fox 25 he agonized over the decision. A prolonged illness late last year led to speculation the longest-serving mayor in city history would step down at the end of this term. Menino will make a formal announcement Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m. at Faneuil Hall. South End Patch
Boston City Councilor Connolly Running for Mayor
Boston City Councilor John Connolly is announcing he is running for mayor today. “I’m running for Mayor because Boston should be the first city in America to transform urban public schools and offer every child a world-class education. We all need our Boston Public Schools to work because great schools lead to safe and healthy neighborhoods,” wrote Connolly on his campaign website. Connolly, from West Roxbury, is in his third term, and is announcing his mayoral candidacy at the corner of Warren and Cambridge streets, in Brighton at 11 a.m. today. A former teacher and father of two young children, Connolly said he will focus on bringing “change to Boston Public Schools and to bring new ideas and new energy to the challenges facing the City of Boston.” “If I’m elected mayor, I’ll work every day for Boston to be a city where anyone can make their home and say it was the best decision they ever made,” wrote Connolly on his website. South End Patch