Election season is thankfully almost over. Though Josh Kraft dropping from the mayoral race in September has cleared the field for Mayor Michele Wu’s second term, the City Councilor At-Large race will decide which four of the eight candidates will represent the city for the next two years. The election will take place on Tuesday, November 4, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Your nearest polling location and voter registration status can be located here.
Caught In Dot compiled a short list of questions based on key issues this election cycle. Candidates were asked how they would:
- Deal with the rising costs of housing in an already expensive state
- Respond to ongoing conversations about bike lanes and broader transportation concerns
- Influence solutions at Mass & Cass
- Keep residents safe amidst ongoing antagonism with the Trump administration
Ruthzee Louijeune has the safest seat on the council. She brought in nearly 46,000 votes in the preliminary election – a figure she attributes to the hard work of her staff. She has received endorsements from the Boston Herald, Boston Globe, and Dorchester Reporter’s Bill Forry.
On Housing – She has supported budget amendments to increase and stabilize Boston’s Rental Voucher Program, co-sponsored a petition to limit external broker fees in the city prior to their statewide elimination, and supported an ordinance to prioritize converting unused municipal property into affordable housing.
On Transportation – Louijeune supports multimodal streets and emphasizes the need to focus on improving public transit and enhancing pedestrian safety. She has supported moving all commuter rail stops in the city into Zone 1A to reduce costs for riders at Hyde Park, Roslindale, and West Roxbury, and standardize the fare citywide.
At Mass & Cass – Louijeune referred to the issue as a humanitarian crisis. “If anyone had the panacea that would solve the addiction crisis, we would have seen it a long time ago,” she said. Louijeune emphasized that detox alone is not enough, and the focus should be on long-term treatment. She said the next term should be dedicated to finding a suitable location for a recovery campus and bringing the state and federal governments to the table.
On National Politics – Louijeune said the Trump Administration is a threat to democracy and undermining the rule of law. “I’m going to continue to stand on the principles that we hold dear,” she said. “Everything that I know as a lawyer, as a citizen, as a student of democracy, that this is not the fight that our ancestors fought for. We did not fight for a country to be ruled by one person.”
She shared that her office is looking into safeguards on political speech and against the federal government’s encroachment on civil rights. She has offered and passed resolutions affirming the council’s commitment to the Trust Act and has supported bystander training to ensure residents know how to report suspicious behavior.
Julia Mejia was hot on Louijeune’s heels in the preliminary election with 42,000 votes. She immigrated to Boston from the Dominican Republic with her mother at age 5 and has spent her political career as an outspoken underdog – even while in office. She has received endorsements from Planned Parenthood, the Boston Teachers Union, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103.
On Housing – Mejia said the city needs to have a ‘come-to-Jesus’ conversation about how we are developing. She said the council needs to be better at holding developers accountable for community concerns. She supports establishing an Office of the Inspector General to help prevent out-of-state actors from buying up entire blocks of the city.
On Transportation – Mejia supports a hyperlocal approach to infrastructure. She said there needs to be a heart-to-heart conversation on the pros and cons of bike lanes that does not decide absolute winners and losers. “There needs to be space for both and we need to prioritize safety for everyone who is using our city streets.”
At Mass & Cass – She called the situation a hot mess, and said the city cannot keep kicking the can down the street and pointing fingers. “I think that we need to recognize that we need a regional approach to this where, you know, our state reps and senators are more engaged,” she said.
Mejia suggested that the organizations and doctors prescribing opioids should be held accountable. “I think it’s easier to just go build a facility and send people off, but we’re not really addressing the root cause.”
On National Politics – Mejia identifies herself as a voice for undocumented residents but views the issue as greater than just President Trump.
“If we’re not standing up around undocumented loved ones, we’re missing the mark because they’re going to come after everyone. Everyone is under attack – Women, LGBTQ+, and poor people. We need to have a different conversation as it relates to this administration, and it can’t begin and end with just immigration issues.”
She said she would support strengthening the Trust Act, but thinks that the conversation is being used as a divisive tool.
Erin Murphy placed third in the preliminary election with 39,000 votes. The Dorchester native and former Boston Public School special education coordinator makes up a third of the council’s center-right bloc. She has received endorsements from the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts, Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, and former Mayor Raymond Flynn.
On Housing – Murphy recognizes that housing costs have become astronomical, but asked, “What do we have the power to do on the council?” She supports increasing the salaries of city employees. “Knowing that when we have residency requirements, and then some of our city workers make less than $60,000 a year. There’s just no way we can expect them to be able to live here.”
She said the city needs to expand middle-income affordable housing lotteries, balance development with community input, and eliminate red tape to get shovels in the ground.
On Transportation – Murphy said she has filed hearings and co-sponsored community meetings to really look at multimodal streets across the city.
“We can’t just shove ideas down neighborhood throats, but at the same time, we can’t ignore that there is a percentage of people who are going to ride their bikes,” she said. “We’re an old city. We can’t change the fact that many of our streets are narrow and sometimes a bike lane, a bus lane, and cars don’t all fit in one place. So I think we have to do a better job of really planning it out.”
At Mass & Cass – Murphy said the city needs to meet people where they are and address the spill over of people into the surrounding neighborhoods. “I think we need to support our community police officers and arrest people who are breaking the law, but at the same time, making sure we’re expanding services we’re providing to those who truly are ready for recovery and need that support,” she said.
On National Politics – She said she supports advocating for residents who are afraid to show up in their own community, but added that she thinks people are trying to blur what the police and ICE agents should do.
“We need to arrest people who are a danger to society, just like we would arrest them even if they were a US citizen,” she said. “I think it’s two very separate things. Immigrants shouldn’t be afraid to be here or feel as though they’re not welcome – They 100% are. But at the same time, if you’re someone who has broken the law, you should expect that no matter what your status is as a citizen or not, you should expect that rules will apply to you,” she said.
Henry Santana is the incumbent to beat. In the preliminary election, he placed fourth. He trailed behind fellow council members by nearly 9,000 votes and received only 4,000 more from his nearest runner-up. He has received endorsements from Mayor Wu and Mass. State Senator Ed Markey.
On Housing – Santana said he is proud to have championed mixed-income social housing, having secured $110-million in housing accelerator funds to support community-oriented development at all income levels. He also co-sponsored the resolution to convert unused city property into affordable housing and a hearing order to enable the construction of additional dwelling units on private lots.
On Transportation – Having only purchased a car recently, Santana said he knows transportation is a huge issue for working-class residents. He said he thinks the council has taken major steps to improve the MBTA and that he would continue to support investments to ensure transportation is affordable and accessible.
At Mass & Cass – As chair of the Public Safety and Criminal Justice committee, Santana said the city should continue to support local programs and take a housing-first approach to influencing solutions at Mass & Cass. In a second term, Santana said he would support an 18-month recovery process.
On National Politics – He shared that he was proud of Mayor Wu for standing up to Trump and protecting Boston. He said he is proud to have worked on things that have been “not necessarily publicized,” including delivering resources to residents in other languages.
“We as a council and as a city need to make sure that we’re still, that we’re going to continue to stand with all of our residents. That includes our immigrants, our LGBTQIA+ residents, and all our marginalized groups here. This is a city for everyone and we need to make sure that, you know, we’re continuing to look at policies to make sure that that’s the case,” he said.
Frank Baker has served on the city council before. In 2023, he ended his 12-year run as District 3 representative after a series of health issues. He has received endorsements from former mayor Marty Walsh, mayoral candidate Domingos DaRosa, and Congressman Steven Lynch. Baker would join the council’s small right-of-center bloc as a check balancing Mayor Michelle Wu.
On Housing – Baker said bringing down housing costs falls outside the purview of the council, but offered that exercising more control of the city budget could help lower the cost of living. “If we used our assets maybe a little differently, assets being your city land and your monies that are set aside to build housing, I think there’s models that we could follow,” he said.
On Transportation – He shared that he is not anti-bike lane, but would prefer a European-style bike network across the city. “I think, like anything, the bike lanes need to be really well thought out and planned. Just like any infrastructure project that is happening in Boston,” he said. He additionally spoke favorably of expanding ferry routes to South Boston and Dorchester.
At Mass & Cass – Baker called for a crackdown on the illegal activity that has spilled over into the South End.
“We can’t expect people to come from the extreme of Mass & Cass, put them in a 12-day detox, then pack them on the back and send them back out and say, ‘Okay, we’ll see you at group therapy tomorrow,’” he said. “The minute they run into their old group of friends, they’re shooting, they’re shooting dope again.”
Instead, Baker supports the establishment of a long-term care facility with inter-agency support using whatever resources are needed from the city, state, and federal levels.
On National Politics – Baker voted for the TRUST Act in 2014 and 2019, but said refusing to cooperate with federal law enforcement is juvenile. “We’re not at the table now. We have no say now. So whatever we think is going to happen or we think is going on, we don’t know because we’re not part of it.
Alexandra Valdez immigrated to Boston at age 10. She has worked in public service for her entire adult life. She served as Latino liaison for Councilman Matt O’Malley while in college and today as the city’s Director of Cultural Affairs, supporting cultural organizations across the city. She has received endorsements from Latino Victory, Planned Parenthood, and Mayor Walsh.
On Housing – Valdez said she would tackle affordability by creating stronger protection rights for renters and supporting homeownership opportunities city-wide. She emphasized expanding co-purchasing programs to allow residents to combine incomes to buy a home.
“Imagine a single parent, a mom or a caregiver who’s able to put their income together with their children, their significant other, or with a family member to buy a home in our city,” she said.
On Transportation – Living in the deep end of Hyde Park, she identifies her neighborhood as an MBTA desert. Whether she takes the train, commuter rail, bus, or decides to drive, she said there are few commutes that take less than 40 minutes. On the city council, Valdez said she would support community-centered transportation plans, including extending the Orange Line and improving bus schedules.
At Mass & Cass – Valdez called the issue deeply personal to her and that she hopes to bring in different perspectives to get a greater scope for what a solution may be. She says it is more than just Boston’s problem and that she would work toward a multi-city approach to solutions.
On National Politics – As an immigrant, Valdez sees the surge of ICE activity nationwide as deeply personal and says we need to use every voice possible to keep residents safe. She supports funding legal aid for detainees and opening free legal clinics in immigrant communities. She noted business owners and cultural groups being hesitant to hold and attend events in the city due to fears of ICE’s presence.
Marvin Mathelier has an expansive resume. He is a combat veteran and lieutenant colonel in the US Marine Corps Reserves, a father of three BPS students, co-owner of Ula Cafe in Jamaica Plain, and Chair of the Toussaint Louverture Cultural Center—the first Haitian cultural center in New England. What he lacks is political experience. “I think that’s a good thing,” he said, “I could bring a fresh experience, fresh perspective, and a fresh voice to the City Council.” He has endorsements from Jamaica Plain Progressives, the Boston Teachers Union, and fellow candidate Louijeune.
On Housing – He identifies housing as the greatest issue faced by the city. “We need to build more. We need to continue to build more housing because with that, supply and demand are going to show us that pricing will go down if we have more stock,” he said, but would support greater community buy-in when it comes to development.
Mathelier supports rent stabilization for large corporately owned properties, addressing Boston’s archaic zoning laws, and exploring new homebuyer programs.
On Transportation – He supports multi-modal streets but recognizes not every neighborhood is built for bike lanes to be carved off their roads. “All in all, we need bike lanes, but I want to make sure that we are talking with the communities about these bike lanes and where they think we could be able to fit them in,” he said.
At Mass & Cass – Mathelier says he would push his state-level counterparts to contribute more to the issue. “We can’t make this a Boston problem because it’s not. We need a Massachusetts overall solution to go ahead and approach this,” he said. “We need to talk to state reps, state senators, and the governor’s office to figure out what resources we can use at the state level, including funding to address the crisis.”
On National Politics – Mathelier said the presence of ICE in the city is unfortunate, and he would respond in three ways. He said he would push the Trust Act to mitigate coordination with local law enforcement. He also advocates for expanding access and supporting the Know Your Rights Campaign to ensure residents know how to engage with federal agents in a “non-harmful way,” and the creation of a legal defense fund to support residents who have been unjustly detained.
“We are seeing people get detained left and right, and a lot of times they don’t have the funding to get themselves out of the situation that they’re in. So creating a legal defense fund to help out those individuals who have been detained would be amazing as well,” he said.
Will Onuoha says he is the most qualified and competent candidate in the race – a bold claim when five fellow candidates have served on the council before. “I was there when they were elected,” he says. He has been endorsed by the Boston Herald, Boston Globe, and Baystate Banner.
On Housing – Onuoha said the problem with affordable housing is that, “You have to be poor to get into and poor to stay inside it.” He said that we have to have policies that reflect our current situation and give people the help to pull themselves up. Instead of affordable housing, Onuoha supports a public-private partnership to construct workforce housing for families making anywhere from $60,000 to $250,000 per year that charges between 20%-30% of a household’s income.
On Transportation – He shared that bike lanes are not new to Boston, but that their current implementation does not serve the city well because they were designed by city planners to chase federal dollars.
“What I would do is look at things like the Southwest Corridor and see how we can expand on it… and see how we can connect a nice bike lane, if at all possible, through the entire city so people who are on bikes can use that without exposing themselves to danger,” he said.
He also supports expanding driver-biker education to train drivers how to look out for bikers and implement traffic lights that regulate both vehicles.
At Mass & Cass – Onuoha said there are many solutions and that he supports using Section 35 to send users to treatment. He also supports bringing in Mercy Ships, an international charity-based NGO that operates a fleet of floating hospitals.
“I would Section 35 them, put them on the ship, and park it down by Black Falcon Pier, which is out of the way, so they have the respect and dignity that they need to get better. It has beds, it has an emergency room, it has an operating room, and it has every facility that a hospital has in order to cure them. After we’re done curing them, you know, provide them with the counseling that they need and then return them to society.”
On National Politics – Onuoha said that the city council does not have any sway over the federal government or federal law enforcement. He would encourage Boston’s immigrant population to avoid making political statements on social media, if not leave it entirely.
He also said he would advise the immigrant community to avoid activities that could disqualify them from citizenship. “I would tell them don’t get in trouble, no drug crimes, no crimes at all whatsoever, don’t get into fights, don’t do anything shy of getting a parking ticket that can get you arrested, you’ve got to lay low and you’ve got to be as good as you possibly can,” he said.
Finally, he would provide maps of all surrounding consulates and embassies to residents, feeling as though they are being followed by ICE. “Why? Because it doesn’t represent the soil of the United States, it represents the soil of the country that it represents, which gives you time to call your family, call an immigration lawyer, or get wraparound services to protect you. ICE is not going to sit around and wait for you to leave.”
