Josh Kraft has dropped out of the Boston mayor’s race, two days after incumbent Michelle Wu trounced him in the city’s preliminary election.
He announced his decision to suspend the campaign in an interview with WCVB Thursday evening.
Kraft, in a statement, said over the past two days he listened to supporters, friends and family, and “determined that what is right for this city — during a time in America where we need to come closer together despite all our differences, instead of igniting divisiveness that pulls us further apart — is not to get caught up in more political mudslinging but rather, to drive the conversation forward in a meaningful way.”
He said he plans to direct his attention and resources to two issues he spent time on during the race — the humanitarian crisis in the neighborhood near Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard, and a program to provide training for previously incarcerated people.
Wu on Thursday said she respected Kraft’s decision and thanked him for “caring about our city deeply enough to want to make it better.”
The longtime nonprofit executive and son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft had vowed to stay in the race until the general election in November. His exit is an abrupt shift for a candidate who spent $5.5 million of his own money on the campaign, more than half of that in August.
But in this week’s preliminary, Wu won the majority of votes in every ward in the city.
Kraft had tried to make his case for the corner office by focusing on neighborhood grievances over the rebuilding of White Stadium in Franklin Park, bike lanes that vexed some business owners and drug problems near “Mass. and Cass.” While the former Boys & Girls Clubs chief executive found a following on those issues, he was unable to parlay that into broader support.
He also faced the headwind of Wu’s unswerving defense of Boston in the face of the Trump administration’s attacks. As Kraft tried to introduce himself to the city as more than the scion of a billionaire NFL family, the mayor’s profile rose on the national stage — and her popularity grew among city voters — as she went toe-to-toe with the Department of Justice and hostile Republicans in Washington.
There were signs of trouble before the preliminary. Just days before the election, Kraft shook up his staff, parting ways with two high-profile political hands, Eileen O’Connor and Will Keyser. People involved with the campaign said the duo raised the prospect with Kraft that he could lose. And that was not a message Kraft wanted to hear, the sources said.
Reached for comment, O’Connor pointed to a statement Keyser Public Strategies issued Sept. 3, saying they were “grateful for the opportunity to work with Josh. We deeply respect and admire his many years of community service work,” and wished him the best in his campaign.
The mood in Kraft’s camp had been somber for 48 hours. On Wednesday, the team arrived at the Nubian Square headquarters for an all-staff meeting. Kraft spoke briefly to the group that afternoon, thanking them for their efforts. After wrapping up, he asked staffers to clean up any trash and political signs in the office, then retreated into a conference room, alone, for a long phone call.
This account is based on interviews with three people involved with the campaign. All requested not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Kraft’s father almost surely weighed in on his son’s plans. He kept a low-key presence for most of the race, but stood on stage and embraced his son at a South Boston union hall after the results came in Tuesday night.
Incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu raked in 72% of the vote, to Kraft’s 23%. When asked what he planned to do to close the gap, Kraft told reporters, “We’ll figure that out tomorrow.”
But he held no campaign or press events in the two days after the election. His only public comment was a social media post on X, condemning political violence and expressing sympathy for the family of Charlie Kirk, the right-wing political activist fatally shot on a Utah campus.
Meanwhile, there was a growing divide amongst Kraft’s staff and volunteers. Some believed he should drop out; others hoped he would continue, saying they still saw a path to victory. In the preliminary election, voter turnout was just 20%, hardly a full picture of Boston’s electorate, even if it indicated how invested voters were in the race at that point.
But a growing chorus of voices cast doubt on Kraft having any chance of catching Wu.
“What we’re seeing right now is that the momentum is not in favor of Josh Kraft,” said Tito Jackson, a former candidate against Mayor Marty Walsh, in an interview with WBUR on Wednesday, before Kraft dropped out. “It is in favor of Michelle Wu, and she seems to be the future of the city of Boston. And Josh Kraft does not.”
On Wednesday morning, Wu spoke with reporters on City Hall Plaza. Asked whether she’d call for Kraft to drop out of the race, she’d said “No.”
“Running for office is an intensely personal decision and everyone has to decide for themselves, with their family, how they want to use their own time and resources and energy,” she said.
Because Kraft dropped out within six days of the preliminary, under Massachusetts state law, the next highest vote-getter could be moved onto the ballot for the general election. In this case, that would be longtime community activist Domingos DaRosa, who earned just 2.6 percent of the vote.
Reached by phone Thursday night, DaRosa was surprised to hear the news. He said he’d have to check in with the election department Friday to confirm he’ll be on the ballot. And if so, he said, he’s ready for it.
“I was ready to take on Wu when I first pulled papers,” DaRosa told WBUR. “Two days ago I was waiting on numbers from an election. And I’m here, back to normal, waiting on my daughter to come out of practice with my wife. I’m just an average person, nothing fancy. I’m a person who wants to see the best for everybody.”
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