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Said Abdikarim
Said Abdikarim ran for election to the Boston City Council to represent District 7 in Massachusetts. He was on the ballot in the primary on September 9, 2025.
Abdikarim completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Said Abdikarim earned a bachelor's degree from The Ohio State University in 2014. His career experience includes working as a nonprofit executive, a technology leader, and an engineer. Abdikarim has been affiliated with Harvard University.[1]
Elections
2025
See also: City elections in Boston, Massachusetts (2025)
General election
The primary occurred on September 9, 2025. The general election will occur on November 4, 2025. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Boston City Council District 7
The following candidates ran in the primary for Boston City Council District 7 on September 9, 2025.
Candidate | ||
 | Said Abdikarim (Nonpartisan)  | |
| Mavrick Afonso (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Said Ahmed (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Wawa Bell (Nonpartisan) | |
| Tchad Cort (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Miniard Culpepper (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Samuel Hurtado (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Natalie Juba-Sutherland (Nonpartisan) | |
| Jerome King (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Shawn Nelson (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Roy Owens (Nonpartisan) | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
To view Abdikarim's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2021
See also: City elections in Boston, Massachusetts (2021)
General election
General election for Boston City Council At-large (4 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Boston City Council At-large on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Michael Flaherty (Nonpartisan) | 17.4 | 62,602 |
| ✔ |  | Julia Mejia (Nonpartisan) | 17.3 | 62,058 |
| ✔ |  | Ruthzee Louijeune (Nonpartisan) | 15.3 | 54,898 |
| ✔ |  | Erin Murphy (Nonpartisan) | 12.0 | 43,076 |
 | David Halbert (Nonpartisan) | 11.9 | 42,765 | |
| Carla Monteiro (Nonpartisan) | 11.1 | 39,876 | ||
| Bridget Nee-Walsh (Nonpartisan) | 7.7 | 27,591 | ||
 | Althea Garrison (Nonpartisan) | 7.0 | 25,078 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 1,350 | ||
| Total votes: 359,294 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Boston City Council At-large (4 seats)
The following candidates ran in the primary for Boston City Council At-large on September 14, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michael Flaherty (Nonpartisan) | 15.0 | 41,509 |
| ✔ | | Julia Mejia (Nonpartisan) | 14.1 | 38,919 |
| ✔ | | Ruthzee Louijeune (Nonpartisan) | 12.1 | 33,546 |
| ✔ | | Erin Murphy (Nonpartisan) | 8.3 | 22,938 |
| ✔ | Carla Monteiro (Nonpartisan) | 6.8 | 18,911 | |
| ✔ | | David Halbert (Nonpartisan) | 6.1 | 17,012 |
| ✔ | | Althea Garrison (Nonpartisan) | 6.1 | 16,906 |
| ✔ | Bridget Nee-Walsh (Nonpartisan) | 5.5 | 15,191 | |
| Kelly Bates (Nonpartisan) | 4.6 | 12,787 | ||
| Alexander Gray (Nonpartisan) | 4.1 | 11,320 | ||
| Jonathan Spillane (Nonpartisan) | 4.1 | 11,217 | ||
| Said Abdikarim (Nonpartisan) | 2.8 | 7,767 | |
 | Domingos DaRosa (Nonpartisan) | 2.5 | 7,011 | |
 | Donnie Palmer (Nonpartisan) | 2.5 | 6,861 | |
| Roy Owens (Nonpartisan) | 1.9 | 5,265 | |
| James Colimon (Nonpartisan) | 1.7 | 4,693 | ||
| Nick Vance (Nonpartisan) | 1.4 | 3,968 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 873 | ||
| Total votes: 276,694 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2025
Video for Ballotpedia
| Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released July 5, 2025 |
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Said Abdikarim completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Abdikarim's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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For nearly a decade, Abdikarim has vigorously advocated for affordable housing, equitable education, small businesses, community spaces, and social and environmental justice, working to elevate the quality of life in District 7.
As a proud 30-year Bostonian, father within the Boston Public Schools system, and the eldest of ten siblings, Abdikarim turned personal challenges—growing up in public housing and witnessing violence—into a driving force for community support. At 13, he sold newspapers to help his family, prioritizing their needs over his education.
His impact speaks volumes: he secured $643,000 in federal funding for Black- and Brown-owned businesses, advanced the development of 150 affordable homes through the Welcome Home Boston initiative, and advocated for summer learning programs benefiting over 18,000 students.
A recipient of the Transformative Leadership Award, Abdikarim brings extensive nonprofit leadership experience and a fierce commitment to justice in all forms. He and his wife of 20 years are raising their children in District 7, dedicated to fostering a more just and united future for the community.- At this pivotal moment for District 7, we need bold, independent leadership rooted in community, not politics. Said Abdikarim has been delivering long before stepping into public office, and he’s ready to bring our collective voice to City Hall with clarity, courage, and purpose.
- Said Abdikarim is a trusted advocate in District 7, serving as a nonprofit leader, a longtime resident, and an unwavering voice for the community. He brings his lived experience, independent perspective, and results-driven leadership to the fight for a more just and equitable Boston.
- With relentless dedication, Abdikarim champions deeply affordable housing and pathways to homeownership for working families. He is committed to fully funding our public schools, preserving our parks and senior spaces, and strengthening the services that directly impact quality of life. From supporting small businesses to advancing racial and economic justice, his priorities reflect the real needs of our neighborhoods.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2021
Said Abdikarim did not complete Ballotpedia's 2021 Candidate Connection survey.
See also
2025 Elections
External links
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Candidate Boston City Council District 7 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 5, 2025
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