{"id":3002,"date":"2026-06-18T10:34:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T10:34:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3002"},"modified":"2026-06-18T10:34:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T10:34:20","slug":"elizabeth-warren-endorses-former-wu-aide-in-state-senate-primary-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3002","title":{"rendered":"Elizabeth Warren endorses former Wu aide in state Senate primary challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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US Senator Elizabeth Warren on Thursday endorsed first-time candidate Daniel Lander, a former aide to Mayor Michelle Wu waging a primary challenge against an incumbent state senator who has clashed with the mayor. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Warren\u2019s endorsement adds heat to an already-hot primary between Lander, a former Warren campaign volunteer, and state Senator William Brownsberger, a Belmont Democrat and a member of Senate leadership who hasn\u2019t faced an opponent for his seat since 2012.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI know firsthand that Daniel is a fighter who is ready to make change for the people of Massachusetts,\u201d Warren said in a statement to the Globe. \u201cI have no doubt that Daniel will hit the ground running to lower housing costs, upgrade our infrastructure, and make a real difference for working families.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

While the Senate race marks Lander\u2019s first political campaign, he has experience on the campaign trail, including working on Wu\u2019s 2021 mayoral campaign and Warren\u2019s 2020 bid for president. He also served as a policy fellow during Warren\u2019s 2012 Senate campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n

In an interview, Lander called Warren his \u201cpolitical hero.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSenator Warren, under a Republican Congress, has been able to pass big bills to tackle the affordable housing crisis and bring down prices for seniors,\u201d Lander said.<\/span><\/p>\n

In endorsing Lander, Warren also offers a bit of political ammunition to Wu, who employed Lander as an aide from November 2021 to January 2026, and has had key pieces of her agenda blocked in the State Senate by fellow Democrats, including Brownsberger. <\/span><\/p>\n

Brownsberger opposed Wu\u2019s plan to shift the city\u2019s tax rates in an effort to spare homeowners huge spikes in their bills, a move Lander has often referred to in arguing that the Legislature is not doing enough to address the region\u2019s cost-of-living crisis.<\/span><\/p>\n

While Wu has not yet weighed in on Lander\u2019s race, she recently endorsed Latoya Gayle, another political newcomer running for state Senate in a primary against another Wu adversary, incumbent South Boston Democrat Nick Collins.<\/span><\/p>\n

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At a candidate forum last week at Berklee College of Music, Lander and Brownsberger clashed over the Senate\u2019s relationship with the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lander said Boston\u2019s senators have not done enough to support Wu\u2019s efforts to tackle issues such as housing affordability. Brownsberger acknowledged the ongoing tension with the mayor, describing his relationship with Wu as \u201ca little bit strained,\u201d but insisting he hasn\u2019t harbored any lingering negative feelings.<\/span><\/p>\n

He and Collins also argued that state lawmakers\u2019 role is not simply to acquiesce to local leaders on issues that can have ramifications beyond those cities and towns.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are one Commonwealth, there are 351 cities and towns \u2014 it\u2019s entirely appropriate that there should be statewide rules on things like taxes, transportation,\u201d Brownsberger said at the event.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brownsberger represents the Suffolk and Middlesex District, which includes Fenway, Back Bay, Beacon Hill, and Allston in Boston, as well as parts of Cambridge, Watertown, and Belmont.<\/span><\/p>\n

He was first elected to the Legislature in 2006, and currently serves as Senate president pro tempore, the chamber\u2019s third-ranking Democrat, and has led the chamber\u2019s redistricting efforts. Since winning a special election for Senate in 2011, he has never faced a primary challenge for his seat in the Legislature.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brownsberger, a former prosecutor and defense attorney, has decades of experience in local elected office, including as a Belmont selectman and chair of the town\u2019s Democratic committee. He unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2013, losing in a crowded Democratic primary won by now-Representative Katherine Clark.<\/span><\/p>\n

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US Senator Elizabeth Warren endorsed Daniel Lander, a former campaign volunteer of hers and a former aide to Mayor\u00a0Michelle Wu, in his primary challenge to state Senator William Brownsberger. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3001,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nElizabeth Warren endorses former Wu aide in state Senate primary challenge - Boston Relocation Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3002\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Elizabeth Warren endorses former Wu aide in state Senate primary challenge - 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