New Candidate Enters Boston Mayoral Race

BOSTON, MA — Boston City Councilor-at-large Michelle Wu is running for mayor in 2021, the Boston Globe reported. Mayor Marty Walsh said that Wu told him Sunday she plans to enter the race.

In a statement to the Globe, a spokesperson for Wu tiptoed around expressly confirming her candidacy.

"Councilor Wu believes that in this moment of hardship in our city, each one of us should be asking ourselves how we can make a difference in strengthening our communities and fighting for change that matches the scale and urgency of our current challenges," Jessicah Pierre said.

Wu, 35, is a Chicago native and Harvard Law School graduate. She was elected to the City Council in 2013 and two years later became the first woman of color named council president. At times critical of the Walsh administration, her recent panning of the Boston Resiliency Fund and the Racial Equity Fund fueled speculation that she had her eye on City Hall.

Walsh has not formally announced his bid for re-election but has indicated that he will seek a third term. An incumbent Boston mayor has not been unseated since 1949.

Wu lives in Roslindale with her husband and their two sons.