Election roundup: Council candidate pulls out of progressive forum; mayoral hopefuls gird for series of forums

Mary Tamer of West Roxbury, who is running for the District 6 (West Roxbury, Jamaica Plain) Council seat Matt O'Malley is leaving, says she's dropped out of a May 12 forum sponsored by Progressive West Roxbury/Roslindale and Roslindale Is for Everyone.

Tamer says it's unfair Progressive West Roxbury/Roslindale won't invite the other West Roxbury candidate (who has yet to file organizational papers with the state) and because, she charges, group organizers have already taken sides in the race and, while she doesn't name names, one assumes that means they're supporting one of the JP candidates (Kendra Hicks and Kelly Ransom), not her, and they won't own up to it at the forum, so obviously the whole thing is unfair.

Meanwhile, a series of groups are hosting a series of weekly Thursday forums on Boston's future for the people running for mayor, starting with a forum tomorrow on racial justice sponsored by the NAACP. Free registration required.

One of the candidates, Michelle Wu, says the city elections department has certified 3,100 signatures for her, so she'll be on the September ballot. She adds she's now has $1 million in the bank.

CommonWealth Magazine takes a look at the Rube Goldberg scheme to get Andrea Campbell to drop out of the race for mayor so Kim Janey can assume the Wakanda mantle as the Black candidate this year: Convince Gov. Baker to appoint Campbell as Suffolk County DA once Rachael Rollins becomes US Attorney. Campbell, who is, at least, a lawyer, has never publicly expressed interest in being DA, but then Kim Janey never expressed much interest in being mayor before Marty Walsh became Biden's bid for US labor secretary.

Former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson came up with the whole Wakanda thing during Rollins's win over numerous other candidates for DA, as a way to ensure we wouldn't wind up with repeat of 2013, when efforts by Black elders to get all the minority candidates to drop out so Charlotte Golar Richie could get into the final failed completely and we wound up with two white guys in the final - which is not something that will happen this year (at this point, it's unlikely even one white guy will make it into the final.

Adrian Walker has some words for Richard Taylor, the developer who e-mailed some Campbell supporters pushing the DA scheme. They are not kind words.

State Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz has endorsed David Halbert, who is running for one of the four at-large council seats.