DA Hayden, eyeing reelection, is outraised by one of his challengers

Money isn’t everything in politics, but it does help. And Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden is going to need a lot more of it as he asks voters to reelect him.

Publicly available campaign finance reports filed in recent days show he was outraised by one of his Democratic challengers – someone who used to work for him – in April.

Linda Champion, who ran for the job in 2018 and briefly worked in Hayden’s office in 2023, after a previous stint as an assistant DA in the office between 2011 and 2013.

“I worked in that office, I was in charge of the municipal and district specialty courts. I do think there is so much more we can do,” particularly in the area of the homeless court, she said in a phone interview last month, referring to a program that has been held at Pine Street Inn and assisted homeless or at-risk defendants, she said in a phone interview last month.

“He should endorse me and get out the way,” she added. “I think anyone who leans on your leadership, that is an endorsement.”

Her quip aside, Champion pulled in more money than he did as she leapt into the race: $40,350 to Hayden’s $32,867.

The Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association notably donated $500 to Champion’s cause. The powerful union remains salty with Hayden after he charged a police officer with manslaughter in March.

Champion also raised money from the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE) union; former bank executive Sonia Alleyne, who helmed a super PAC for Andrea Campbell when she ran for mayor; Quincy restaurateur Jimmy Liang; and Essex County Register of Deeds Eileen Duff’s campaign committee.

Hayden had his best fundraising month in two years, thanks to some help from Sen. Lydia Edwards and Mayor Michelle Wu, who headlined fundraisers for him. Many of the donations came from attorneys with the Keches Law Group and McDermott Quilty Miller & Hanley, as well as Wu allies inside and outside City Hall.

Hayden also received $1,000 checks from Suffolk CEO John Fish; Whitey Bulger defense attorney J.W. Carney Jr.; former Suffolk DA Ralph Martin; and Dunkin’ franchise operator Clayton Turnbull. Hayden has $60,380 in cash on hand as of the end of April.

Taking a page from Wu’s 2025 reelection playbook, the Hayden campaign spokesperson called Boston “the safest major city in the country.” Steep drops in violent crime across the county due to Hayden’s “strategic and innovative approaches to serve all our communities and keep them safe,” she added.

Rachael Rollins, who won the 2018 Suffolk DA race before leaving for a federal job that ended with ethics investigations, did not report raising any money but has been gathering signatures. She still has roughly $42,700 left over in her campaign account.

Amid chatter about her renewed political ambitions, Rollins is also taking part in a podcast with former Celtics captain Dana Barros called “Ball and Order.” She addressed her possible candidacy during the second episode, which was posted on April 29 and appeared to be taped mid-month.

“Nothing is final. As people hopefully understand, candidates can pull papers to consider running for office,” she said. “You have to get a requisite number of signatures that are certified from registered voters within the area you are running for geographically. So yeah. Papers were pulled but nothing is final.”

I was grateful to “Ball and Order” for including timestamps so I could skip the sportsball talk and avoid the Karen Read takes. Is Hayden in trouble or will he still be DA once the votes are counted? Send me your takes: [email protected].

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