In a significant move in the Boston mayoral race, Jim Davis, chairman of New Balance and a prominent Republican donor, contributed $1 million to the super PAC ‘Your City, Your Future’ on April 1.
This donation marks the beginning of what campaign finance experts foresee as a highly expensive election cycle.
Super PACs, which are increasingly involved in local races, have gained notoriety for their substantial financial influence in national politics.
Brendan Glavin, director of insights at OpenSecrets, commented on the expanded role of super PACs, stating, ‘This is happening in these kinds of races all over the country now. Their influence and the effect they have now versus 10 years ago, it’s just blown up.’
The previous mayoral election in Boston demonstrated the power of super PACs, allowing them to inject millions into mailers and advertisements.
Cities like New York and Chicago have also experienced a similar surge in super PAC activity in recent years.
The ‘Your City, Your Future’ PAC, formed in February, aims to back candidates committed to fostering a ‘thriving, affordable, and sustainable Boston for all,’ while opposing those who do not meet these criteria.
So far, the PAC has allocated $100,000 to digital ads supporting Josh Kraft, a Democrat and philanthropist running to unseat incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu.
The controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission in 2010 allows super PACs to raise and spend unlimited sums of money, provided they do not coordinate directly with campaign efforts.
Davis, who has established himself as a major donor to national Republican causes, previously contributed $400,000 to support President Trump during his 2016 campaign.
This isn’t Davis’s first attempt to sway Boston’s political landscape through super PACs; he has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in supporting moderate and centrist candidates in past mayoral and city council elections.
During the last mayoral election in 2021, Davis backed Annissa Essaibi George, despite her requests for super PACs to refrain from participating.
Neither Kraft nor Wu has publicly called for super PACs to withdraw from the current election cycle.
Amidst this developing dynamic, Mayor Wu is also expected to receive backing from various outside spending groups.
Previously, super PACs tied to major unions and environmental organizations contributed hundreds of thousands to support her campaign in 2021.
In a recent move, the 1199 SEIU service union’s political action committee donated $100,000 to a PAC named ‘Bold Boston,’ which has invested in city council candidates endorsed by Wu in the last election, though it has yet to report any expenditures this cycle.
Wu has proven to be a capable fundraiser as well, currently boasting nearly $2 million in her campaign account.
Following a high-profile trip to Washington, D.C., where she defended Boston’s immigration enforcement policies, Wu raised over $300,000 in March.
Political analysts suggest that Jim Davis’s support for Kraft, a Trump donor, could enable Wu to associate her opponent with the former president, who has struggled in terms of popularity in Boston.
Jerold Duquette, a political science professor at Central Connecticut State University, expressed that the current political climate may not favor billionaire support in progressive states.
He noted, ‘I think it’s going to be pretty easy for the Wu campaign to put them together. This is not the year for billionaires in blue states. I think the timing’s bad.’
Erin O’Brien, a political science professor at UMass Boston, added that Kraft could face challenges as perception plays a critical role in campaigns.
She remarked, ‘It makes it easier for those who want to paint Josh Kraft in ‘MAGA’ paint.’
A conservative political columnist noted that Davis’s financial backing for Kraft provided additional leverage for Wu’s campaign.
In response to assertions regarding his political alliances, Kraft stated to WBUR that he has ‘never voted’ for Trump nor financially supported him, criticizing the former president’s temperament and ethics.
Despite these challenges, Kraft appears to be gaining momentum, having raised over $700,000 within his first two months of campaigning and is poised to leverage his family’s financial resources.
To bolster his campaign, Kraft released a new video ad criticizing Wu’s ambitious $200 million plan for redeveloping White Stadium in Franklin Park with a professional women’s soccer team.
As digital advertisements funded by the super PAC aligned with Davis flood potential voters’ screens, experts suggest that while financial backing is advantageous, a candidate’s reputation is ultimately paramount in political contests.
image source from：https://www.wbur.org/news/2025/04/25/wu-kraft-super-pac-money-boston-mayor-election
