Worcester's Mayor And Councilor Trade Rebukes

WORCESTER, MA - Mayor Joseph Petty released a statement rebuking Councilor and Vice Chair Khrystian King's mayoral bid announcement, a message which King himself then called "a perfect example of petty politics and divisiveness."

In his initial statement announcing his second mayoral bid, King said he "took on the political establishment when it came to transparency and accountability" and that "there is no real leadership, no accountability to residents and the divisive politics is causing dysfunction," in reference to city hall.

Petty targeted both those claims. His statement reads:

"Consider this:

• A City Councilor who participated in an illegal, non-public council subcommittee meeting - casting votes and now facing multiple open meeting violations - announces his candidacy for Mayor on a platform of 'transparency and accountability.'
• A City Councilor who has contributed to weekly chaos and gridlock, making dysfunction the hallmark of this council term, now claims that 'divisive politics' are to blame for the city's stagnation."

The Telegram & Gazette reported that two open meeting complaints are being assessed by the city councilor that regard Worcester's education committee, of which King is a part of.

At this Tuesday's council meeting, two petitions filed by Worcester residents accused the committee of discussing issuing a statement supporting LGBTQ+ students and educators outside of the regular session.

According to the Telegram, King said there was no attempt to conceal and that it was a public statement.

"This is a perfect example of the petty politics and divisiveness that has Worcester City Hall so broken," King told Patch in response to the mayor's statement. "Housing costs continue to skyrocket, people are being displaced, energy bills are destroying household budgets."

It's the latest chapter in Worcester's 2025 saga of city council news, which kicked off in January when Councilor Thu Nguyen, the first elected openly-nonbinary person in the Commonwealth, announced they would take a hiatus and accused Petty and several other councilors of LGBTQ+ discrimination.

In the following days the parties traded written statements, and last Wednesday Nguyen announcedthey will not be returning to council "indefinitely."

"The mayor wants to engage in a back and forth 'statement off,'" King said. "I won't do it. I'm focused on the work."