Wu’s reelection triggered a mayoral pay increase. Here’s how much.

Local News

Under legislation passed in 2022, members of the Boston City Council are also set to see raises.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and members of the City Council are set to see notable pay raises once the calendar turns to 2026. Councilors have seen their pay steadily increase for the last few years, but this marks the first time Wu will receive a raise since first being sworn in four years ago.

The mayor will now earn an annual salary of $250,000, up from $207,000. The annual salary for City Councilors will increase to $125,000, up from $120,000. These changes will go into effect the first week of January.  

The raises come after a municipal election in which Wu secured a second term by running unopposed. She was initially challenged by philanthropist Josh Kraft, but he bowed out of the race after an overwhelming loss in the city’s preliminary election. Wu maintained her popularity locally this year and made waves on the national stage, using the Trump administration as a foil to cast herself as a defender of Boston and the liberal policies its residents largely support. 

Wu has many allies on the City Council, and the body will stay largely the same for the next two years. All incumbents running for reelection won their races, some with Wu’s help. The only new member of the council will be Miniard Culpepper, who emerged from a crowded field of candidates in District 7 after former Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson resigned and was sentenced to prison on public corruption charges. A few councilors are currently jockeying amongst themselves to become the body’s next president in January. 

The salary changes are the result of a measure that was approved by the council in 2022 after a back-and-forth between the body and Wu. It stipulated that the salary of councilor members increase from $103,500 to $115,000 in 2024, to $120,000 in 2025, and to $125,000 in 2026. Wu’s one-time pay raise could only go into effect after the next mayoral election. 

Wu’s initial proposal would have increased the mayoral salary to $230,000 and the salary for council members to $115,000. The council, in turn, voted to increase Wu’s salary to $250,000 and to increase their own to $125,000. Wu vetoed this proposal, saying that it was simply “too high.” Councilors voted to override the veto, establishing gradual pay increases for themselves and the raise Wu is now set to receive. 

The 2022 measure does not include any further pay raises. Any potential future raises will have to be proposed and eventually approved by the council.