Kim Driscoll Launches Campaign for Lieutenant Governor Mayor Arrigo Is Among Key Early Endorsements for Salem Mayor

Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo is among the key early endorsements for Kim Driscoll, the five-term Mayor of Salem, who announced her candidacy last week for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts in the 2022 Democratic Primary.

“We need leadership on Beacon Hill that understands the important role that cities and towns play in the Commonwealth’s success,” said Mayor Arrigo, who called Kim “a leader we rely on.”

Having Mayor Arrigo on board as a supporter will give the Driscoll campaign a huge boost. Arrigo has been recognized for his own exceptional leadership during the pandemic and for the continuing growth and prosperity of Revere. Plans for a new Revere High School have brought additional excitement to what is a diverse and vibrant Revere community.

Kim Driscoll is the only mayor running in this year’s statewide elections and promises a new focus from Beacon Hill that puts the needs of real people in our cities and towns first.

In an announcement video, Driscoll was joined by 21 state and local leaders from around Massachusetts, showcasing her broad support and the desire for fresh ideas on Beacon Hill with experience delivering for the people.

“Mayors like me have been on the frontlines of our most urgent fights – from COVID-19 response and recovery to racial equality, the climate crisis, strengthening our public schools and making housing more affordable,” Driscoll said in the video. “At this moment of change, so much is at stake. We need leaders who understand and can empower communities. Our cities and towns need a new voice on Beacon Hill.”

A 55-year-old mother of three, Kim is married to a union bricklayer, and has been overwhelmingly reelected Salem Mayor since her first run in 2005. The daughter of a Navy cook from Lynn and an accountant’s assistant from Trinidad, Kim spent time in a variety of states in her younger years before attending Salem State College to study government while playing point guard for the school’s basketball team.

Kim began her government career in Chelsea, serving as chief legal counsel and deputy city manager. In 2003, just three years into her Salem City Council term, Kim was outraged by the behavior she saw in Salem’s City Hall and launched a campaign for Mayor. She won a tough, three-way race in 2005, becoming Salem’s first woman mayor, and was reelected four more times with significant margins. 

In City Hall, Kim has led on issues that matter most to voters – COVID-19 response and recovery, improving the city’s public schools as chairwoman of the School Committee, boosting the economy by supporting small business owners, climate change and resiliency in a historic seaside community, and racial equity and inclusion at a time of national upheaval. 

In her announcement video, Salem colleagues, fellow mayors, state leaders, and supporters all agreed: Kim is a proven leader, and the best candidate to bring a fresh perspective and strong local voice to the State House.

Among those endorsing Kim as she launched her campaign were:

• Governor’s Councilor Eileen Duff

• Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo

• Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur

• Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller

• Amesbury Mayor Kassandra Gove

• Medford Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn

• Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui 

• Cambridge Vice Mayor Alanna Mallon

• State Senator Joan Lovely (D-Salem) 

• State Representative Sally Kerans (D-Danvers)

• State Representative Paul Tucker (D-Salem)

• Salem School Committee Vice Chair Manny Cruz

• Former Newburyport Mayor Donna Holaday

• Former Salem City Councilor Christine Madore

• Nate Bryant, State University Administrator & Community Leader

• Patricia Gozemba, Chair of Salem Alliance for the Environment

• Nicole Lashomb, LGBTQIA+ Community Leader 

• Graysen M. Ocasio, LGBTQIA+ Community Leader

• Shawn Newton, Chair of Salem’s Racial Equity Task Force

• Heather O’Brien, Climate Educator & Community Organizer, Boston

• Rosario Ubiera-Minaya, Non-Profit Executive & Community Leader

“Having a leader on Beacon Hill who can be our support and understand our challenges and be our champion who has been on the front lines is incredibly important to our success,” said Amesbury Mayor Kassandra Gove. “Kim is a leader among us. She has been an advocate and brought our voice to the State House for years. Now is her time to be there herself.”

“Kim has been a tremendous partner for Mayors across Massachusetts as we have worked through the pandemic and I know that she is ready to do a great job for all of Massachusetts up on Beacon Hill,” said Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur. 

“Kim is not only a leader in Salem, but a leader in the region,’’ said Medford Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn, “I feel she will be best to move our schools forward, the economy, climate change, and so much more.”

“I’ve seen Kim’s amazing work as Salem’s mayor and I look to her as a leadership model,” said Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui. 

“Beacon Hill needs leaders like Kim who will be a voice for cities and towns deeply rooted in hands-on experience,” said Cambridge Vice Mayor Alanna Mallon.

Governor’s Councilor Eileen Duff called Kim “the only candidate in this race who has the skill set and the competencies that it takes to be a good and effective partner with the Governor and to be a great Lieutenant Governor.”

“Kim Driscoll is capable, compassionate, principled, inclusive, smart as heck and great in a crisis,” said Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller. “She’s the real deal.”

Manny Cruz, who serves with Kim as Vice Chair of the Salem School Committee, called her a “champion for educational equity for all students” and an “ally and champion for anti-racist policies that will deeply impact Black and brown communities across our Commonwealth.” 

Heather O’Brien, a climate educator and community organizer in Boston, said “as our cities and towns grapple with climate change, Kim has brought to fruition solutions such as public water transportation, initiated harvesting wind-energy, and has implemented a comprehensive tree-canopy program — Kim finds solutions that are both equitable and economically sound, taking on the tough issues of climate change.”

State Rep. Paul Tucker (D-Salem), who worked closely with Kim in that role and as Salem’s Police Chief, called Kim the “go-to municipal leader among her colleagues statewide,” crediting her “bold action” through the pandemic as a “model for other communities.” 

“From a strong COVID-19 response and recovery, to spearheading climate resiliency for our region, Kim is a strong leader who always puts people first,” said Senator Joan Lovely (D-Salem).

(Information from Kim Driscoll’s campaign announcement press release was used in the compilation of this story).