Salem City Councilor Won't Challenge Moulton In Primary

SALEM, MA — A Democrat who had never held elected office before being elected to Salem City Council in 2017 dropped out of the race to challenge U.S. Rep Seth Moulton (D-MA). In a letter posted on her campaign Website over the weekend, Lisa Peterson said there was less voter interest in a competitive Congressional race since she entered the race and that she could be more effective in a "different format" over the course of the next year.

Peterson, 41, is not running for reelection to her Ward 3 City Council seat in Tuesday's municipal election in Salem. Peterson announced her plans to run for Congress in July, when Moulton was still mounting a long shot bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. Moulton ended his presidential run in late August.

On Monday, Peterson endorsed Patti Morsillo in the race to replace her as the Ward 3 representative on City Council. Morsillo is running against Robert Camire in Tuesday's election. "Patti’s creative thinking; independent research approach; and deep knowledge of Ward 3, the issues we face, and the solutions we need to address them make her the ideal candidate to lead Ward 3 into the coming years," Peterson said.

With Peterson's departure from the race, Moulton still faces challenges from D. Nathaniel Mulcahy and Jamie Belsito-Zahlaway in next year's Democratic primary. A third challenger, Matthew Mixon, is running as an independent.