Worcester Mayor Petty Will Seek Reelection In 2023

WORCESTER, MA — A major question about the 2023 Worcester city election has been answered: Mayor Joe Petty will run for a seventh term.

Petty confirmed he'll run in an interview Wednesday on the Talk of the Commonwealth radio show, where he regularly appears to talk about civic issues.

"A lot of good things still happening in the city, we have a new superintendent, we have a new city manager — I just want to make sure everything is set before I leave office," Petty said. "There's still a lot more work to do."

Earlier this year, Petty sought to leave his mayoral seat when he ran for an open state Senate seat being left by Harriette Chandler. That led to speculation Petty might not seek another term as mayor.

After losing to Robyn Kennedy in the September Democratic primary, Petty dove right back into city issues, pushing for the council to hire then-acting city manager Eric Batista instead of conducting a nationwide search. Petty got Batista hired in an 8-3 vote in November.

Petty first won a seat as an at-large councilor in 1997. He won the mayoral seat in the 2011 municipal election, and has kept it in every election since.

In 2023, all Worcester City Council and school committee seats will be up for election. To become mayor in Worcester, mayoral candidates must come in first, but also win an at-large seat. The Worcester mayor serves as chair of the city council and as a member of the Worcester School Committee.

Three other candidates have also filed paperwork to run for city council in 2023.

Johanna Hampton-Dance, who ran for the District 2 seat against Candy Mero-Carlson in 2021, will likely seek an at-large seat. Maydee Morales, a homeless outreach worker and shelter director, and Domenica Perrone, a former Worcester Health and Human Services worker, have both filed paperwork with the state to run in 2023.

Meanwhile, District 1 Councilor Sean Rose has said he won't run for reelection in 2023.