The wide field of hopefuls once looking to represent District 7 on the Boston City Council has failed to coalesce behind the two remaining candidates, saying they’re unenthusiastic about the options that emerged from the super tight preliminary election.
District 7 is the only open council seat on the ballot after Tania Fernandes Anderson pleaded guilty to federal charges of theft and wire fraud.
Tuesday’s election will determine who represents the bulk of Roxbury as the neighborhood contends with safety concerns around the area known as Mass. and Cass, the region’s unyielding epicenter of addiction and homelessness. The next councilor must also navigate persistent neighborhood concerns about new development, including the controversial reconstruction of White Stadium in Franklin Park.
Rev. Miniard Culpepper and Said “Coach” Ahmed both advanced from a field of 11 after a recount confirmed them as the top two vote-getters in last month’s preliminary election. Only 58 votes separated Ahmed’s 1,170 total votes from Culpepper’s 1,112.
Of the nine other D7 candidates who ran in the Sept. 9 preliminary, only three have issued endorsements. Said Abdikarim, Wawa Bell and Samuel Hurtado threw their support behind Culpepper, who has collected other, high-profile endorsements. Many of the preliminary competitors told GBH News, however, that the choice of Ahmed and Culpepper leaves much to be desired in terms of vision and policy.
“Based on what I’ve heard [and] seen, I don’t believe either candidate is well prepared to serve our district,” said Mavrick Afonso who garnered almost 15% of the preliminary vote.
“I will say that whoever ultimately wins, I am prepared to work with them to continue to work for our community,” he added.
Afonso said he plans to write-in his own name on the ballot.
Since advancing to the general election, Ahmed, a BPS educator, and Culpepper, a local pastor and former government attorney, have both participated in community forums and promoted their campaigns on social media.
Ahmed has tried to relate to voters by emphasizing his experience as an immigrant, a youth running coach and a renter within the district. Culpepper has highlighted his experiences as an attorney for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and a native Bostonian who purchased and rehabbed the house where his grandparents once lived.
According to the latest filings with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, Ahmed had nearly $16,000 in campaign funds on hand while Culpepper had $33,000.
Culpepper, who ran unsuccessfully for the 2nd Suffolk state senate seat in 2022, has racked up some high-profile endorsements for his council candidacy from sitting politicians including U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, and Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden. He’s also received endorsements from the Boston Teachers Union and The Boston Globe.
“My friend Miniard Culpepper has spent his life showing up for his community — with compassion in his heart, conviction in his voice, and courage in his actions,” said Pressley in her endorsement message. “He embodies the bold leadership District 7 deserves: rooted in justice, grounded in faith, and driven by love for the people he serves.”
Meanwhile, Ahmed, who ran unsuccessfully for the 7th Suffolk state representative seat last year, does not appear to have endorsements listed on his campaign website.
The lack of enthusiasm has been echoed quietly among other residents and civic groups and suggests another potentially tight election next week.
Both candidates failed to identify Boston’s Chief of Planning Kairos Chen at a recent forum held by the D7 Advisory Council.
“Okay, so we’re in trouble then,” said co-moderator Lavette Coney when both men said they didn’t know that name. “I need you to look it up,” she chided.
“I feel D7 deserves better choices,” said Jerome King, a former community development volunteer who finished with 2% of the preliminary vote and also ran unsuccessfully for the seat in 2023. King said both candidates approached him for an endorsement, but he withheld support.
“D7 needs a councilor who is going to be credible in the office and accountable for the things the district is experiencing,” he said.
In terms of policy, Ahmed and Culpepper hold many of the same positions. Both support rent control and increasing tenant-to-ownership programs as ways to address the city’s affordable housing crisis. Both have said they support an elected school committee. Both have expressed support for stepped up police enforcement to help with residual safety issues around Mass. and Cass.
The pair is split when it comes to deploying safe injection sites. Culpepper supports them and Ahmed has withheld judgement in the name of more research. Ahmed has also suggested that other neighborhoods within Boston should help shoulder the burden of hosting addiction services.
Former candidate Natalie Juba-Sutherland, a banking professional originally from Trinidad and Tobago indicated she is still undecided. Neither preliminary candidates Tchad Cort nor perennial candidate Roy Owens, who advanced to the general election and lost to Fernandes Anderson in 2021, responded to GBH News requests for interviews.
Other preliminary D7 candidates expressed concerns about “rubber stamping” the popular mayor’s agenda for the district with little resistance on behalf of what long-time residents want for the area.
“I’m not voting for either one of them,” said Shawn Dwayne Nelson, who finished in the preliminary with 3% of the vote. “When I don’t like candidates, I typically just write my own name.”
Nelson noted that Wu initiated the redevelopment of White Stadium despite vocal opposition. Neither candidate gave sufficient resistance, he said.
“If you’re willing to do all this stuff against the people’s wishes, what else is she going to do,” said Nelson.
Mayor Michelle Wu, who is running for her second term unopposed, has not made an endorsement in District 7. Her campaign did not respond to GBH News inquiries about whether she has spoken with either candidate or plans to endorse.
For residents, the lingering shadow of Fernandes Anderson’s conviction and multiple ethical lapses while in office is also a concern.
At a candidate conversation last week for residents in the South End, attendees like new homeowner Danielle Mendol said “earning and building back public trust,” should be a priority for whoever holds the council seat next.
“It’s time for D7 to have a councilor that’s not in the news, that’s not in prison, and that’s representing D7 well,” she said — a reference to the month-long prison sentence that Fernandes Anderson is now serving.
Juliana Mishkin, another South End resident, added, “I’m also hoping that we can restore public trust to our district ... I think we deserve good leadership.”
Both candidates have pledged to follow all conflict-of-interest rules.
