New Entrant In Worcester 2021 Council Race From Holy Cross

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester's 2021 City Council races got a little more crowded over the long weekend with a seventh challenger stepping into the field.

Shirley Konneh, 37, organized a City Council election committee on Jan. 15, according to the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance. Konneh, a College Hill resident, is an assistant director for career development at Holy Cross.

Konneh, who was born in Nigeria, was listed on the Worcester Business Journal’s 2019 "40 Under 40" list. She told the publication she wants to someday be a college president — or the U.S. Secretary of Education.

Previously, six other candidates have either filed state paperwork to run for Worcester City Council or announced their intention to run: political organizer Cory Bisbee; Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance advocacy director Etel Haxhiaj, who ran for a Council seat in 2019; YWCA Central Massachusetts domestic violence services director Deborah Hall; Newton Square resident Yenni Desroches; Main South resident Thu Nguyen; and neighborhood activist Johanna Hampton-Dance, who is challenging Candy Mero-Carlson in District 2.

Incumbent District 5 Councilor Matthew Wally has also announced that he'll switch to run in the at-large race in 2021 to focus on citywide issues.