Overview

• The NBC10 Boston and Telemundo Boston forum featured separate 30-minute segments, no live audience, and invitations limited to poll leaders Michelle Wu and Josh Kraft.
• Both candidates defended Boston’s Trust Act, signaling opposition to expanded federal immigration enforcement in local operations.
• Wu highlighted administration efforts on affordability, including co-purchasing and office-to-residential conversions, and graded her first-term housing progress as “incomplete.”
• Kraft proposed an opt-in rent-control model with a 20 percent annual tax rebate for landlords who limit increases, a displacement relief fund, expanded first-time buyer eligibility, and a goal of 12,000 new housing units.
• Moderators, including BECMA’s Nicole Obi, pressed Kraft on funding sources, unit benchmarks, and his lack of government experience, with the preliminary election set for Sept. 9 and two other candidates also on the ballot.