Josh Kraft, the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, officially announced his bid for mayor of Boston on Tuesday morning.
“I’m asking the city of Boston to set aside any ideas they may have about me based on my last name and let me tell you about the path of service I’ve forged,” he said at the event at Prince Hall in Dorchester.
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He flagged housing and transportation improvements, as well as responsiveness at City Hall, as some of his key concerns for the city. He described himself as an underdog in the race.
"I'm excited for this challenge," Kraft told supporters.
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Kraft released a video on YouTube on Monday in which he outlines his reasons for seeking the mayor's office and his top priority.
"There's a saying we had at the Boys & Girls Club. I care," Kraft says in the video. "I care that Boston is heading in the wrong direction. I care that our region continues to leave many people behind. I care that middle class families are being squeezed by the cost of housing, and I care that City Hall puts politics and ideology ahead of impact. That's why I'm running for mayor."
Kraft says in the video that his number one priority is to lower the cost of housing by building more of it in Boston.
"Strong leadership starts with listening," he says. "I will continue listening to people in every part of Boston, because my life has taught me that you can learn form anyone. True change comes not from orders from City Hall but by empowering people and communities."
The video ends with a slate that reads, "Democrat for Mayor Josh Kraft. More housing. More opportunity."
More on Josh Kraft
Kraft's entry into the mayoral race sets up a high-profile battle with incumbent Michelle Wu, who said in an interview last year that she expects to make her official announcement in 2025. Wu gave birth to her third child last month and has already returned to work.
Kraft took aim at Wu's administration in his announcement.
"On the number one challenge facing our residents, access to housing that regular people can afford, production under Mayor Wu has ground to a dead halt," he said.
More than 20,000 planned housing units are shovel-ready but are "stuck due to regulations imposed by the current administration," Kraft said. His plan includes one-time incentives to spur construction of new units at a price-point that middle class and first-time buyers can afford, he said.
Kraft's housing plan also includes a form of rent control that he said would be acceptable for renters and landlords alike. Under his leadership, Kraft said, Boston would cut a building owner's real estate taxes in exchange for the landlord capping rent increases for a 10-year period. "Luxury rentals" would be excluded from the program, he added.
"Mayor Wu promised us rent control three years ago. We will deliver it," Kraft said.
A former CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston and leader of Kraft Family Philanthropies, Kraft is president of the New England Patriots Foundation. He lists his primary residence as a Battery Wharf condominium on Boston's waterfront purchased in 2023 by a Foxborough-based LLC.
Wu has run into brick walls on Beacon Hill as state lawmakers have batted aside proposals to allow a return to rent control and to shift some of Boston's tax burden onto commercial property owners.
Lawmakers did advance a measure to open up a swath of land on the Mystic River where the Kraft family aims to build a pro soccer stadium, despite Wu voicing concerns from City Hall. Kraft told reporters Tuesday that he would recuse himself from any soccer stadium negotiations if he wins the mayor's office.
Kraft said he could succeed with the solons of the State House where Wu has met resistance, because "I feel like one of the things I'm good at is listening to people, connecting with people, understanding what makes them tick or what they need."
Kraft also focused on the city's budget, public schools system, and transportation woes.
Taking aim at city spending, Kraft said Wu has overseen increased payrolls and boosted spending, while not finding "a single penny to be cut."
"That this is not only irresponsible, it's just not believable," he said.
The North End resident bemoaned high spending on Boston Public Schools while the system "regularly fails our kids on virtually every measure" including the timeliness of school buses.
One of the biggest cheers from the crowd came in response to a knock on Wu's effort to build more bus and bike lanes around the city, which Kraft said has increased congestion. He said he would immediately pause all bike lane construction.
"We have a leader that just does not listen. Too often, Mayor Wu acts as if she alone has all the answers. Whether it's housing, schools, neighborhood services, or bike lanes," he said. "Instead of listening to community voices, trying to understand what families and businesses need, too often they're being tuned out. On issue after issue, the mayor has become less and less receptive, and more and more disconnected from the communities, their feedback, and their needs."
He also took a shot at the Wu administration's handling of 3-1-1 complaints for issues like broken streetlights or potholes in need of filling. Constituents get voicemail recordings and unresponsive phone apps, he said, rather than timely results.
Being responsive to residents was a theme during the remarks, and former Boston Police Commissioner William Gross, who stood in the crowd of supporters behind Kraft, struck a similar note in his comments to reporters after the event.
"Talk to the people. Some people feel left out. Some people feel as though they're not listened to. I know, man, the seniors still come to me about bike lanes and transportation. I'm like, I'm retired, go to your politicians. And they feel as though no one's listening to them where they live," Gross said.
Gross said he personally knows Kraft and believes he is "a listener" who would fill that void.
"He takes constructive criticism. He'll never retaliate against you if he doesn't agree with you, or you don't agree with him," the former commissioner said.
Other familiar faces popped up in the crowd from the political scene of yesteryear.
Anisha Chakrabarti, Gov. Charlie Baker's deputy communications director until he left office, was handling press at Kraft's event. She works for Kraft Sports + Entertainment as director of corporate communications and strategy. Will Keyser, who worked on Baker's winning campaign, stood behind Kraft during the media scrum. And retired State Trooper Nathan Thomas, who served on the protection detail for Baker and other governors, stood watch at the edge of the stage area.
Hampden County District Attorney Anthony Gulluni, who prosecutes crimes in the state's third-largest city of Springfield, was on hand to show his support. He met Kraft through their service on the state Hate Crimes Task Force, both originally appointed by Gov. Baker.
"[I] immediately realized how passionate Josh is for any sort of public service and working to better our communities. And we became very good friends," Gulluni told the News Service. "And I believe in him. I think he's a tremendous leader. I think he has so much to give to public service. And I think in this case, he's going to be a tremendous leader for the City of Boston."
Kraft has already faced questions about his positions on national politics, particularly given his father's high-profile support for President Donald Trump, but he was unabashed Tuesday in his rejection of Trump and his identification as a Democrat, telling reporters he supported Kamala Harris in 2024.
"This campaign is not about ideology. It's about getting results," Kraft told his supporters in Grove Hall.
A voicemail left at a Wu campaign number was not returned. An email to Wu's campaign press address, seeking comment on Kraft's remarks, triggered an auto-reply directing the media to instead contact City Hall. There was no response to a followup email sent to Wu's City Hall press office.
Watch the full campaign video below:
Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn, the son of former Mayor Ray Flynn, had been considering a run as well, but announced last month that he would not seek the office.
