Boston Mayoral Race: Councilor At-Large Annissa Essaibi George Announces Candidacy

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BOSTON (AP) — Another Boston city councilor formally declared her candidacy for mayor on Thursday.

Councilor At-Large Annissa Essaibi George, 47, touted her experiences as a former public school teacher, mother of four and small business owner at the launch of her campaign outside East Boston High School.

She becomes the third member of the board to declare her candidacy, joining Michelle Wu and Andrea Campbell in the race to replace Mayor Marty Walsh.

Essaibi George is the first to declare since President Joe Biden nominated Walsh to be his labor secretary.

She said she has seen first hand the inequities the city faces — housing and homelessness, food insecurity, poor access to transportation, the need for multiple jobs, language barriers, child care, health care — all made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I'm running for mayor because I believe in a Boston that sees the inequity, the everyday injustices, the wrongs and tackles them head on," she said.

First elected in 2015, Essaibi-George is the daughter of immigrants — a father from Tunisia and a mother born in Germany in a settlement for people displaced from Poland.

The election will be held this year.