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Readers: Should Kendra Lara run for reelection?

Voters will head to the polls on September 12.

City Councilor Kendra Lara attends a residency hearing in Boston Municipal Court in Boston. (Nancy Lane/Pool)

August 8, 2023

2 minutes to read

Voters will head to the polls on September 12 for the preliminary municipal election, with Boston City Councilors up for re-election – and the state of the city’s legislative body up for debate.

Over the past year, members of the Boston City Council have faced controversy and infighting, ranging from sexual assault allegations, to accusations of anti-Catholic bias, to Councilor Kendra Lara facing charges related to a car crash last month.

Lara’s case, in which she crashed her car into a home on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain with her son in the back seat, has sparked debate over the state of the Council, which has been referred to as a “a clown show.”

Police said Lara was going more than double the 25 mph speed limit when she crashed an unregistered, uninsured car while driving without a license. She has pleaded not guilty in the charges related to the crash.

In response to the incident and revelations about her driving record, Boston City Councilor Michael Flaherty called on Lara to resign.

“The behavior is one of a habitual scofflaw,” Flaherty told hosts of NBC10 Boston’s @Issue. “To go 10 years without a license isn’t a mistake; it’s the middle finger, frankly.”

Lara told the Boston Globe that she is still planning to seek her second term on the council this fall, despite the controversy.

“My hope is that my worst day is not being weighed against the two years of work I’ve done on the City Council,” Lara said.

Controversy continues to follow the embattled councilor. Last week, a city residency case was brought against Lara, alleging that she had only proven five months of residency in her district before being elected — instead of the required year. However, the court ruled in favor of Lara, saying the objectors did not meet the burden of proof showing that she lived outside her constituency.

Lara called the case “frivolous” and “politically motivated,” given that she faces two challengers for her seat in the preliminary municipal election, the Globe reported.

She will face West Roxbury’s William King and Jamaica Plain’s Ben Weber in the preliminary elections.

Lara’s office did not respond to Boston.com’s request for comment.

We want to know how you feel about Lara’s plans to run for reelection and the current state of the city council. Fill out the survey below or e-mail [email protected] and your response may appear in a future Boston.com article.

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