Wu administration puts City Hall attorney on leave amid his mayoral run

THE BOSTON City Hall attorney running against his boss, Mayor Michelle Wu, has been placed on administrative leave. 

John F. Houton, the assistant corporation counsel who jumped into the mayoral race earlier this month, said his superiors put him on administrative leave on Friday. 

City officials also told him that they were looking to hire outside counsel to sort out whether it was possible for him to mount a campaign, according to Houton. 

Houton said he believes it is an intimidation tactic by the Wu administration. He pointed to the mayor encouraging past employees to run for office, though he acknowledged the uniqueness of an attorney who works for the city to also run for the top job. “Everything has been above board by me,” he said. 

In a statement, a Wu administration spokesperson said the city’s office of human resources, in consultation with outside counsel, is handling employment decisions regarding Houton. The mayor is not involved, the spokesperson added. 

“In order to perform its essential functions, the Law Department’s work depends on being fully non-political in its operations, and, importantly, the Department must be perceived as non-political by Cabinet Chiefs and Department heads seeking advice and counsel,” the spokesperson said.  

Wu is running for a second four-year term and is chiefly facing a challenge from Josh Kraft, the son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Both Wu and Kraft have gathered enough signatures – over 3,000 – to make it onto the ballot. Ten or so other people have expressed interest in running for mayor.

A 26-year-old City Hall receptionist, Kerry Augustin, is also running and no employment action has been taken against him.

Houton has worked as an attorney since the late Tom Menino’s mayoral administration, notching 18 years with City Hall. His current job involves serving as in-house counsel to the city’s treasury department. 

He said he opposes rent control, as Wu has proposed, and he believes city officials should cooperate more with the Trump administration and federal immigration officials. 

When Houton expressed interest in running for mayor in 2021, he sought guidance from superiors but received conflicting advice, he said. But he opted against a run and did not put his name on the ballot. “I let the deadline pass because I felt uncertain from their guidance about how this is going to play out,” he said. 

He expressed regret about the decision to stay out and now is focused on getting signatures to get his name on the 2025 ballot.