Ruthanne Fuller Wants To Be The First Woman Mayor Of Newton

NEWTON, MA — Ruthanne Fuller isn't one to sit still. She and her husband moved to Newton about a quarter century ago when their twins were in elementary school and her youngest was not even old enough for partial day kindergarten. But it didn't take long for her to suddenly get swooped into joining and becoming active in her neighborhood association.

"Like so many of us you just get involved you don’t even think about it," she said recently in an interview.

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That six years of neighborhood association work which included hammering out development issues related to Route 9 and the growth of Boston College into the neighborhood lead to a blue ribbon commission, which led to the Newton citizens advisory group, where she was appointed vice chairwoman. At that time, she recalled, the city was facing a structural deficit and her group was tasked with finding ways to improve operating inefficiencies and find a way to balance the $260 million budget.

"And we delivered. We finished work in 2009," she said. Warren ended up using the task force's recommendations as a blueprint. "Through that work, I got to meet people from all over the city and became both deeply knowledgeable about and passionate about the issues facing the city," she said.

So, she ran for the at-large seat at what was then the Board of Aldermen before the name changed to City Council, a step she rooted for and considers progress. Fuller served as one of the at large councilors for the past seven years and then something happened.

"I never had an 'ah ha' moment," she said. It was more organic than that. Maybe it had to do with the people here and there over the years telling her she should run for mayor.

The Brown undergraduate and the Harvard Business School graduate started thinking about what it would look like to run for mayor of Newton.

"I think [Setti's] been quite a good mayor … I knew I wasn’t going to run against him." she said. But she got to talking to him, asking him questions about his role and the idea grew. She'd had many different phases in her life, working full time and part time and almost always civically engaged since she left her hometown of Detroit where witnessing the riots at age 10 had an impact on her. And now she could see a new phase.

Next step

She loved her job as city councilor, she said. But the impact a mayor could have on the city...

"I’m passionate about the city of Newton. I care deeply about its future. And I love making a difference as a city councilor, but being in the mayor’s office you can really drive the agenda forward."

She was sitting in her office two days after then candidate Donald Trump was elected to the presidency and her phone rang. Mayor Setti Warren told her to stay tuned because he was about to make an announcement that he was not going to run for reelection. She says she first wondered what this would mean for him politically, what his next steps would be before she realized this was her chance.

The same day Warren announced he was not going to run again, Fuller announced she was stepping up.

If you had asked her 15 years ago if she'd ever consider this, she would have told you no way.

However now, with her three children in their 20s, the timing was right.

"I’m at the right stage of live right now to be able to devote myself 110 percent," she said. It made sense to her husband, Joe, of 34 years a man she'd known since they were 13. It made sense to her three sons, she said, adding that they were all supportive.

Look at the city's challenges as a whole

Although she was the first to pull papers and to return them - with almost double the required signatures - as of today six others have indicated their intention to run for mayor of Newton and have until the end of July to return the papers with signatures of Newton residents to City Hall.

But Fuller sees herself as a standout candidate.

"I’ve had 30 years of experience in all three sectors, as a management consultant in private sector, strategic planner in the non profit sector and eight years as a city councilor so I bring a wealth of knowledge and experience and financial analysis," she said adding she believed she was the only candidate with that breadth. "I’ve also had years of experience bringing diverse people together to …. get the work done," she said.

She said she didn't see just one standout challenge in the city, though she noted several times she felt Setti was leaving it in a good space. But she did say she wanted to look at the challenges ahead on a whole.

"The city [is made up of] these integrated systems where schools and housing and transportation and economic development the environment and culture all interact with each other and you actually have to get the look at it as an integrated system and and pay attention to all the parts of it, you can’t just pay attention to one. It all matters and you’ve got to do it understanding that you can have finite financial resources to get the work done. You need a vision. And you have to have the experience to deliver. It’s leadership and management that go hand in hand," she said.

31st Mayor of Newton a lady?

As for the fact that should she move past the preliminary and then win the election in November to become the first woman mayor of Newton?

Yes, she thinks the agenda changes when there's a woman in the room and she says she believes to better decision making and outcomes. She points to the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and notes who was in the room when the decision was made on that front. All men.

"I’m struck by how often girls ask me whether there’s been a mayor that’s been a woman," she said stressing multiple times in the interview that she didn't think anyone should vote for her solely because she's a woman, "But it's an important consideration... I promise you that when you have a diverse group of people in the room the decision making is better."

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[Editor's note: An earlier version of this article misstated what role Fuller had as an at-large councilor. By way of clarification, Scott Lennon who is also running for mayor is president of the council.]

Photo by Amaury DuJardin, campaign manager for Ruthanne Fuller. Courtesy photo.