At-large Two of the four incumbents did not seek re-election.
Michelle Wu, who joined the city council in 2014, announced on September 15, 2020, that she would run in the
mayoral election.
Annissa Essaibi George, who joined the city council in 2016, announced on January 27, 2021, that she would run in the mayoral election. Incumbent councillors
Michael F. Flaherty, who joined the city council in 2014, and
Julia Mejia, who won election to the city council by one vote in the
2019 election, ran for reelection. Other candidates in the election included:
Althea Garrison, the first openly transgender person to serve in a state legislature and former member of the city council;
Ruthzee Louijeune, a lawyer who worked as senior counsel for Senator
Elizabeth Warren's presidential and senatorial campaigns;
Erin Murphy, a former teacher in the
Boston Public Schools; Alex Gray, a policy analyst; and Nick Vance, a political action co-chair of the
NAACP in Boston. The top eight vote-getters in the primary election advanced to the general election.
1st district Councillor
Lydia Edwards, who was first elected to the city council in
2017, announced that she would run for reelection and launched her campaign on February 26, 2021, at a virtual event. Edwards was unopposed.
2nd district Councillor
Ed Flynn filed to run for reelection. He ran unopposed.
3rd district Councillor
Frank Baker, who was first elected in 2011, announced that he would run for reelection after initially wanting to leave politics, but the
COVID-19 pandemic changed his plans. Stephen McBride also ran in the election.
4th district Councillor
Andrea Campbell, who joined the city council in 2016, announced on September 24, 2020, that she would run for mayor.
Evandro Carvalho, who served in the
Massachusetts House of Representatives, announced on October 19 that he would run in the election. Leonard M. Lee Sr., a community organizer and member of the Boston Parks Commission, announced on February 3, 2021, that he would run in the election, stating that he was inspired to run after a nineteen-year-old was killed by the police outside his home. Other candidates included: William Dickerson III, a former city council aide; Nikkia Jean-Charles, who was inspired by
Ayanna Pressley's campaign for a seat in the
United States House of Representatives; and Joel Richards, a Boston Public School teacher and Boston Teachers Union activist. The top two vote-getters in the primary election advanced to the general election.
5th district Councillor
Ricardo Arroyo ran for reelection; John White also ran in the election.
6th district Kendra Hicks, an activist, announced in September 2020 that she would run against councilor
Matt O'Malley. O'Malley, who joined the council in 2010, announced on December 2, 2020, that he would not seek reelection, so he could focus on his family. Two other candidates also ran for the seat; the top two vote-getters in the preliminary election advanced to the general election.
7th district Councillor
Kim Janey, who was serving as acting-mayor and joined the council in 2018, announced on April 6, 2021, that she would run in the mayoral election. Candidates for the seat included
Tania Fernandes Anderson, director of a non-profit organization, and
Roy Owens Sr., a
perennial candidate in council elections. The top two vote-getters in the preliminary election advanced to the general election.
8th district Councillor
Kenzie Bok, who joined the council in 2020, filed to run for re-election. She was unopposed.
9th district Councillor
Liz Breadon, who joined the council in 2020, ran for reelection against Michael Bianchi and entrepreneur Eric Porter. The top two vote-getters in the preliminary election advanced to the general election. ==Campaign finance==