Which Boston mayoral candidate do you align with most? Take our quiz
Five major candidates are competing in the Sept. 14 preliminary election for a chance to become Boston’s next mayor. The top two willmove on to the Nov. 2 generalelection.
While their views on several issues seem similar, the candidates come from diverse backgrounds and bring different perspectives. The Globe asked each of them to respond to a list of questions on an array of policy topics. Want to see who you agree with the most? Take the quiz to meet your match.
↘ Question 1 of 22:
Imagine the city has just received an unexpected financial windfall. The funding can only be directed to a single policy area. What would you want the mayor to do with the money?
Candidates who agree with you:
Essaibi George: The pandemic has shined a bright light on the disparities that exist across the City of Boston. As Mayor, I would use this funding to invest in equity programs across a broad spectrum of issues, including housing, education, healthcare and transportation to truly rebuild a better, more just Boston for all.
Janey: I went into BPS and was bused — experiencing first-hand some of the darkest moments in our city’s history on the frontlines of the battle of school desegregation. I have lived the education challenges so many of our families have faced. That is why I dedicated my entire career to fighting for children and promoting equity and excellence in education.
↘ Question 2 of 22:
If one of these officials were to endorse a candidate for mayor, whose support would mean more to you?
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: My priority is earning the endorsement of Boston voters.
Essaibi George: I have personal relationships with both Congresswoman Pressley and Secretary Walsh and would appreciate the opportunity to explain to residents why I would value both of their endorsements.
↘ Question 3 of 22:
Do you think the mayor should mandate more affordable housing contributions from developers, beyond what the city already requires?
Candidates who agree with you:
↘ Question 4 of 22:
If Massachusetts were to once again allow cities to enact rent control, should the mayor do so in Boston? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Janey: I’m committed to ensuring affordable housing for every Boston resident, that allows them to stay in the city they grew up in, and invites young families to put down roots. And I do believe local control is important on all issues, so I support state legislation that would allow cities and towns to decide for themselves how to control rising housing costs.
Wu: Boston’s housing crisis, exacerbated by an unreliable transportation system, continues to destabilize communities, deepen racial inequities, and threaten economic vitality. My housing agenda calls for increasing housing supply through leveraging federal relief funds, city-owned land, zoning reform, and local resources. At the same time, we must stabilize residents and communities. Rent control or stabilization does not generate more housing, but these policy tools can be deployed through a targeted and intentional approach, in conjunction with a larger housing strategy, to provide emergency relief for the displacement crisis.
↘ Question 5 of 22:
Should the city allow Amazon to build a distribution center at Widett Circle, a high-profile piece of real estate in an industrial area between South Boston and the Southeast Expressway? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: Amazon could anchor Widett, and has shown interest in being part of a mixed-use complex. However, it needs to be one piece of a larger puzzle and more complex vision to catalyze neighborhood economic development, incentivize the state to make infrastructure investments, and allow the city to rethink Widett as a potential transit hub (commuter rail, rapid bus, electrified rapid transit, reopen track 61 to South Boston Waterfront) to connect several neighborhoods (including Fairmount neighborhoods) to downtown, while incorporating climate resilience measures.
↘ Question 6 of 22:
Once considered for an Olympic stadium and then a mixed-use site that would serve as a gateway to the city, Widett Circle is now under consideration for an Amazon distribution center. What plan would you like to see for the 20-acre site? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Janey: I will ensure that any development at Widett Circle comes with a robust community process and achieves our goals for more equitable and sustainable growth.
Wu: It is a rare opportunity in Boston for a large parcel of land to include substantial public sector ownership. Before committing to specific uses, the redevelopment of Widett Circle should integrate a plan across city, state, and private ownership in the context of our regional housing and economic development needs, climate resiliency, and the highest and best use of public land.
↘ Question 7 of 22:
Do you think the city should rebuild the Long Island Bridge, which was abruptly closed in 2014 because it was deemed unsafe, to develop a recovery campus on the island in Boston Harbor? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Janey: In the 1980s one of my uncles was found dead with a needle in his arm. Nobody cared but his family. Now, fortunately, decades later, people recognize this as a public health crisis. We mustn’t lose sight of the fact that there are people who are in desperate need of services and support ... while we also focus on the longer term plans of rebuilding the recovery campus on Long Island.
Wu: Regarding the Long Island Bridge, I’m focused on solutions we will deliver in the four-year term I’m seeking. Rather than continue deflecting responsibility through waiting for years of litigation and costly construction of a major infrastructure project in an ever more climate-volatile open ocean, we should redirect those resources to retrofitting and building supportive housing on city-owned property, create a real plan for ferry access to the island, and invest in access to treatment through community health centers and regional coordination.
↘ Question 8 of 22:
Many of the concerns of residents in the area of Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard are based on the concentration of so many addiction treatment providers in one area. Do you support relocating programs to other neighborhoods? Read more about this topic.
Barros: The data clearly shows that overdose prevention centers save lives, and a person who dies from an overdose can never seek help. They must be part of a continuum of care and allow opportunities for engagement and intervention.
Campbell: I am not firmly supportive of safe consumption sites, but answered yes because I think it is critical that the city study the safety and effectiveness of these sites, looking at how other cities have implemented them, and make decisions about possibly implementing them with caution, care, and partnership with the healthcare community, providers, and the State.
Janey: No, but I remain open to further conversations on the option. My focus is and will continue to be connecting residents with substance use disorder with treatment and supportive housing so that they can rebuild their lives.
↘ Question 10 of 22:
Amid calls for policing reform and reducing police overtime spending, what strategy would you like the next mayor to take?
Candidates who agree with you:
Essaibi George: To decrease our police budget and actually cut down on paying our police officers overtime, we have to hire more officers. We can be both safe and just—these things are not mutually exclusive—and as Mayor, I will push for critical reforms in the Police Department to ensure Boston consistently lives up to its recognition as a leader in community policing.
Barros: I will reform the gang database; it will not be punitive. It must be used in partnership with the community, and users need to be accountable to city transparency and equity policies. We must establish a cross-checking system with public health, faith leaders, CBOs, and street workers to centralize individuals and deploy strategic and unique resources, not simply arrest individuals.
Essaibi George: While I do not believe in dismantling the gang database, I believe the database must be reformed and will do this as Mayor.
↘ Question 12 of 22:
Would you support a program that redirected nonviolent 911 calls to programs and services other than police? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
↘ Question 13 of 22:
Should uniformed Boston Police Department officers be stationed at city schools? Read more about this topic.
Janey: In 2016, I supported the advocacy of BLS students who founded BLS B.L.A.C.K. to raise awareness on issues facing Black students at Boston Latin School and I worked with civil rights organizations to address several concerns, including diversity at the three exam schools. I served on the Opportunity and Achievement Gap Task Force and I ensured that the 2016 policy that was adopted by the Boston School Committee revising the admissions’ policy for the exams schools.
As Mayor, I continue to support equity and inclusion in our exam schools and we are now finally moving toward that goal.
↘ Question 15 of 22:
Would you support the creation of additional charter schools in Boston?
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: The state funding must be rectified and BPS must be fully funded before charter schools expand. They cannot impede BPS growth and success.
Campbell: The 2016 ballot question settled that charter schools would be capped and will not expand in Boston. The mayor of Boston’s job is to ensure our Boston Public Schools are excellent and that every child growing up in Boston has access to a high-quality BPS education, and that is — and always has been — my focus. I’m a proud BPS graduate, but recognize how the inequities in that system continue to fail particularly Black and Brown students, as they failed my twin brother Andre. As a councilor and candidate, I’ve released actionable plans to close opportunity gaps, deliver universal pre-k, and transform our high schools to build many pathways to success for our students. The inaction on those plans by the district and previous Administration is why I’m running for mayor.
↘ Question 16 of 22:
Do you think the mayor should replace the current schools superintendent, given the high rate of turnover in that position in recent years? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Campbell: It would be premature to say whether I would replace the BPS superintendent. Parents, teachers, and students deserve bold, effective, and visionary leadership for the Boston Public Schools, but they also deserve stability and a mayor who is able to work with appointed leaders (not handpicked and micromanaged) to deliver on our plans for an equitable district and city. My priority will be to ensure our district has that leadership as well as the stability to move our district forward.
↘ Question 17 of 22:
At what age would you support fully funded, universal preschool?
Candidates who agree with you:
↘ Question 18 of 22:
Should school committee members be elected by the public or appointed by the mayor?
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: I will have two student School Committee members with full voting rights, and establish subcommittees with mandated seats for parents and students for increased representation and engagement.
Essaibi George: I will enact an appointed School Committee with seats partially appointed by the Mayor and the City Council with representation from a wide array of education stakeholders who reflect the diversity of Boston, including a voting student seat with a stipend.
Janey: It is long past time to give the residents more of a voice in our schools. We need to keep guardrails in place to ensure that the school committee actually represents the Boston we want to be.
↘ Question 19 of 22:
Should Madison Park, the city’s only technical school, become autonomous or remain part of the Boston Public Schools system? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: Madison Park should have a new, separate school board for oversight and dedicated staff.
↘ Question 20 of 22:
Would you support an effort to amend the city charter, which establishes a strong mayor form of government, to give the City Council more authority in the city budget decisions?
Candidates who agree with you:
↘ Question 21 of 22:
Should the mayor keep or eliminate the Boston Planning & Development Agency, the agency that referees development in the city, but has been criticized for having too much power? Read more about this topic.
Candidates who agree with you:
Barros: I will restructure the organizational and hierarchical structure of the BPDA so community planning will have authority and dictate implementation to the development team. I will expand planning staff and resources to enhance community engagement, transparency, and coordination.
Essaibi George: As Mayor, I intend to create a planning office separate from the Boston Planning & Development Agency.
Janey: While I believe that the agency has important statutory duties to fulfill, it also needs serious reimagining for how it enacts its policies. My approach to reimagining the BPDA starts with the understanding that planning has to drive development, not the other way around. We need to ensure that our planning processes are equitable and set goals based on a clear set of city-wide and neighborhood land use policies that strengthen the fabric of our neighborhoods and propose a modernized, community-value-based zoning code.
Wu: We should establish a separate planning agency to undertake citywide planning and update our zoning code to match community needs for affordability, climate resiliency, and transportation access.
Here are the candidates in order of who you matched with the most. You can see how they answered each question by scrolling up to the question or clicking on a policy topic. Toggle your answers and see how the matching order changes.
0% match
Best Match (Tied)0 out of 0 questions
Michelle Wu
Boston City Councilor
The first woman of color to serve as council president, City Councilor Wu is pledging to tackle the widening gap between the city’s rich and poor.
0% match
Best Match (Tied)0 out of 0 questions
Kim Janey
Acting Mayor
As acting mayor, Janey is the first Black person and first woman to lead Boston. In her pitch to take the job full-term, she is campaigning for policing reform and economic assistance for vulnerable communities.
0% match
Best Match (Tied)0 out of 0 questions
Annissa Essaibi George
Boston City Councilor
The at-large city councilor known for her advocacy around mental health and homelessness, is promising a more centrist approach to issues like police reform, compared to her rivals.
0% match
Best Match (Tied)0 out of 0 questions
Andrea Campbell
Boston City Councilor
The Mattapan District Councilor and first Black woman to serve as Council President is running to break generational cycles of poverty, inequity and injustice in Boston.
0% match
Best Match (Tied)0 out of 0 questions
John Barros
Former chief of economic development
The Roxbury and Dorchester native is promising leadership and experience to bring people together and move everyone forward.
The Globe presented the survey to all the major candidates in late June, and responses were returned by early July. Each candidate was afforded limited space to elaborate on any of the questions to add context. Those responses were edited for space.
