Disgraced Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson plans to 'celebrate' at final meeting: 'One last stand'

Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald on Jun 24, 2025

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BOSTON — Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, who was convicted on federal corruption charges and resigned in disgrace, is throwing herself a party by inviting the public to come “celebrate” with her at her last City Council meeting this week.

Fernandes Anderson’s office sent out an email blast Monday with a formal invitation to join her at Wednesday’s meeting, which she dubbed “One Last Stand for District 7,” referring to the Roxbury-centric district she represents on the Council.

“As the sun sets on my time in the Council chamber, I’d be honored if you’d join me for my final Council meeting this Wednesday, June 25 at 12 p.m. in the Council chamber at City Hall,” Fernandes Anderson wrote. “Let’s celebrate all we’ve built together, and look ahead to the bright paths still to come.”

Fernandes Anderson, 46, was federally indicted and arrested last December. She was convicted in May after pleading guilty to two of six federal corruption charges — one count of wire fraud and one count of theft concerning a federal program — that were lodged against her in last year’s indictment. Four other wire fraud charges were dropped as part of a plea deal she entered into with federal prosecutors this past April.

The charges are tied to a kickback scheme Fernandes Anderson carried out at City Hall two years ago. The second-term councilor doled out a $13,000 bonus to one of her Council staffers, a relative but not immediate family member, on the condition that $7,000 be kicked back to her. The handoff was coordinated by text and took place in a City Hall bathroom in June 2023, the federal indictment states.

Fernandes Anderson formally submitted her letter of resignation to the city earlier this month, with her last day set for July 4. Mayor Michelle Wu and five of her council colleagues, including the council president, called for her immediate resignation upon her arrest and indictment — calls that Fernandes Anderson defied for months.

Councilors can be removed from the body only after sentencing for a felony, rather than conviction, per state law.

Fernandes Anderson is set to be sentenced in federal court on July 29. U.S. Attorney Leah Foley has recommended that the councilor be sentenced to a year and day in prison and ordered to pay $13,000 in restitution.

Two of the councilors who initially called for her resignation, Ed Flynn and Erin Murphy, bashed Fernandes Anderson’s decision to publicly celebrate her departure, given the circumstances.

“This is just another embarrassing chapter for the entire Boston City Council and the residents of Boston,” Flynn said in a statement to the Herald. “I believe it’s not appropriate to have a going away celebration for Councilor Fernandes Anderson.”

Murphy added, “Celebrating or ignoring serious misconduct isn’t just passive indifference — it actively corrodes public trust.

“When leaders refuse accountability or dismiss scandal, they fail the very standards they were elected to uphold,” Murphy said in a statement to the Herald. “By pretending nothing happened, we effectively condone the wrongdoing, sending a message that ethical breaches can be swept under the rug.’

Along with sending a formal invitation to her “dearest D7 family,” Fernandes Anderson has 10 different resolution filings on the meeting agenda, meaning that she will be speaking on the Council floor throughout much of Wednesday’s meeting.

Among the filings are resolutions “recognizing the first edition of the District 7 workbook,” which is part of Fernandes Anderson’s transition plan for the district; to “support public understanding and the role of and responsibilities of Boston city councilors;” and “in honor and gratitude to the District 7 constituents for their courage, diversity and collective commitment to justice and civic engagement.”

Cape Verdean-born Fernandes Anderson also filed a resolution “to recognize and to celebrate the independence of Cabo Verde and to declare July as Cabo Verdean Heritage Month.”

Councilors are often asked by a resolution’s sponsor to vote on resolutions on the same day they’re introduced. Such measures are non-binding and symbolic in nature.

“This isn’t goodbye,” Fernandes Anderson wrote. “It’s a moment to honor the work we’ve done together, the voices we’ve lifted, and the community we’ve loved forward. If you’re able, I’d be so grateful to share this closing chapter with you.”

Fernandes Anderson is paid a $120,000 salary as a city councilor and represents District 7, which includes Roxbury, Dorchester, Fenway and part of the South End. She was the first Muslim American, African immigrant and formerly undocumented person to be elected to the City Council, and first took office in January 2022.

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