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Boston City Council President Andrea Campbell is joining at-large City Councilor Michelle Wu in the race to be the city’s next chief executive.

Campbell represents Mattapan and parts of Dorchester and is the first Black woman to be elected to the council presidency. On the council, she has been a leader in efforts to reform the city’s police force and to improve its schools.

After her mother was killed in a car crash when Campbell and her twin brother were eight months old, the pair spent the first eight years of their lives living with relatives and in foster care, often in public housing. Campbell’s brother died eight years ago in state custody while awaiting trial, but Campbell’s life took a different turn. Accepted to Boston Latin, she went on to attend Princeton, earn a law degree from UCLA and serve as deputy legal counsel for former Gov. Deval Patrick before unseating former City Councilor Charles Yancey in 2015.

Campbell’s campaign did not return emails from Banker & Tradesman but in a video announcing her candidacy, she said Boston needs to be “a great city for all of us,” echoing a criticism Wu has also lobbed at Mayor Marty Walsh, that he is not doing enough to reduce inequality and systemic racism.

“I’m running for mayor because every neighborhood deserves real change and a real chance,” she said. “I believe in the promise of our future and together we can make Boston a city where everyone has an opportunity to fulfil their dreams.”

Campbell’s platform, as described on her campaign website, promises a “holistic and equitable” approach to the city’s housing crisis, noting her support for a proposed real estate transfer tax on home sales over $2 million. Her website also includes promises to “prioritize housing stability,” prevent evictions during the pandemic and to create more and better affordable housing. Her website also promises she will work to increase access to banking services by creating incentives “to make sure that banks are serving Bostonians equitably.”

Walsh has not yet declared his candidacy in the 2021 race, but is widely expected to run for a third term.