For an entire century, the city of Boston has been led by a white mayor. Next year, Councilwoman Andrea Campbell will try to change that. On Thursday, Campbell announced that she plans to run for mayor against fellow councilor Michelle Wu. Current Mayor Marty Walsh hasn't formally thrown his hat into the race, but he is expected to seek a third term.
"I think we are in a profound moment of reckoning in our country and our city," Campbell told WBUR.
"People are rising up and demanding change, and I think Boston needs leadership that not only understands the systemic inequities that are facing residents but also has lived them, so I am running for mayor to be that leader."
The 38-year-old candidate is a Boston native who lost her mother before her first birthday and was forced into foster care. She went on to graduate from the Boston Latin School and attend Princeton University. Campbell later earned a law degree from UCLA and worked for former presidential candidate Deval Patrick.
Campbell earned a set on the Boston City Council in 2015 by defeating 16-term incumbent Charles Yancey. She was re-elected in 2017 and became council president.
"By the grace of God and the opportunities this city afforded me, I stand before you today as a girl who grew up in public housing in Roxbury and the South End, with a family torn apart by incarceration and loss, who [was] elected the first Black woman to serve as the president of the Boston City Council and today launch a campaign to be the first Black mayor and first woman mayor of the city of Boston," she told a group of supporters this week.
Campbell will have the chance to reach her goal when voters take to the polls on November 2, 2021.
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