Second City Councilor Launches Somerville Mayoral Campaign

SOMERVILLE, MA — City Councilor Willie Burnley Jr. announced he is running for mayor in the 2025 city election.

First elected as Councilor-At-Large in 2021, Burnley Jr. joins the mayoral race with the goal of making the city more “affordable, accessible, and accountable.” The Emerson College graduate also serves Somerville as the Chair of the Licenses and Permits Committee, and member of the Traffic and Parking, Finance, and Rodent Committees among others.

“I suffered the life-altering stress of displacement when my landlord raised his rent by hundreds of dollars, forcing me to leave the city and state. That’s why, as the most prolific legislator on the Somerville City Council, I’ve ensured that our community’s demands for expanded tenant rights, safer streets, and increased accessibility were turned into law,” Burnley Jr.’s website reads.

Burnley Jr. joins fellow Councilor-At-Large Jake Wilson, who announced his candidacy in December. Katjana Ballantyne is currently serving her second two-year term as Mayor of Somerville.