Katjana Ballantyne

Katjana Ballantyne
Ballantyne at the opening of Union Square Station in 2022
36th Mayor of Somerville
In office
January 3, 2022 – January 2, 2026
Preceded byJoseph Curtatone
Succeeded byJake Wilson
Personal details
Born1962 (age 63–64)
PartyDemocratic[1]
Education

Katjana Ballantyne (born 1962) is an American politician who served as the 36th mayor of Somerville, Massachusetts between January 3, 2022 and January 2, 2026.[2]

Early life and education

Ballantyne was born in Greece and was adopted by her father and mother, a Scottish man and a Czech-German woman. They immigrated to the United States four years after she was born.[3] She later received her B.A. from Saint Michael's College in 1984 and her M.B.A. from Suffolk University in 1998.[4]

Political Career

Ballantyne ran unsuccessfully in a close race for the Ward 7 seat on the Somerville City Council (then named the Board of Aldermen) in 2011,[5] but ran again successfully in 2013, and won each of her reelection bids.[6] She was elected President of the City Council by her fellow councilors in 2018.[7]

After then-mayor Joe Curtatone announced that he would not run for another term, Ballantyne announced her bid for mayor in 2021, and won in a race against fellow city councilor Will Mbah.[8][9] She ran and won a second term in 2023.[10]

In February 2025, under Ballantyne's administration, Somerville, alongside Chelsea, Massachusetts, sued the Trump administration for threatening to withdraw federal funds from the city because of its sanctuary city status.[11]

She ran for a third term in 2025, but lost in a preliminary election against city councilors Willie Burnley Jr. and Jake Wilson.[12][13] Wilson went on to win in the municipal election and took office on January 2, 2026, ending Ballantyne's term.[14][15]

References

  1. ^ "OCPF". www.ocpf.us. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  2. ^ "Office of Mayor Katjana Ballantyne | City of Somerville". www.somervillema.gov. Archived from the original on December 20, 2025. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  3. ^ Schoenberg, Shira (February 13, 2022). "Meet Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne". CommonWealth Beacon. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  4. ^ Newman, Alex. "Candidate Profile: Katjana Ballantyne, Somerville Mayor". Patch.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Somerville ElectionStats » 2011 Nov 8 :: Municipal Election :: Councilor :: Ward 7". Somerville ElectionStats. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  6. ^ "Somerville ElectionStats » 2013 Nov 5 :: Municipal Election :: Councilor :: Ward 7". Somerville ElectionStats. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  7. ^ "2018/01/01 05:00 PM City Council Organizational Meeting - Web Outline - City of Somerville, Massachusetts". somervillecityma.iqm2.com. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  8. ^ Committee to elect Katjana Ballantyne. "Ward 7 Councilor Katjana Ballantyne announces run for mayor of Somerville". Wicked Local. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  9. ^ "Somerville ElectionStats » 2021 Nov 2 :: Municipal Election :: Mayor :: City of Somerville". Somerville ElectionStats. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  10. ^ "Somerville ElectionStats » 2023 Nov 7 :: Municipal Election :: Mayor :: City of Somerville". Somerville ElectionStats. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  11. ^ Fortin, Matt; Klein, Asher (February 24, 2025). "Somerville, Chelsea file lawsuit against Trump administration over immigration policy". NBC Boston. Retrieved December 27, 2025.
  12. ^ "Somerville Mayor Ballantyne announces reelection bid for 3rd term". The Tufts Daily. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  13. ^ Cristantiello, Ross (September 17, 2025). "Somerville mayor eliminated in preliminary election". Boston.com. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  14. ^ Muneer, Sana (November 5, 2025). "Jake Wilson to be Somerville's next mayor, unofficial results show". Boston.com. Retrieved December 27, 2025.
  15. ^ City of Somerville MA; Wilson, Jake (January 2, 2026). "Instagram". Instagram. Archived from the original on January 2, 2026. Retrieved January 2, 2026. Happy New Year, Somerville! This morning at City Hall I was officially sworn in as Mayor. First order of business? Opening the Mayor's office door.
allikas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katjana_Ballantyne