Medford, October 21, 2025
News Summary
The Medford municipal election features a contentious City Council race with incumbents Zac Bears and Matt Leming competing for an at-large seat. Both candidates aim to address critical local issues such as housing affordability, city infrastructure, and education needs. With similar backgrounds and age, their campaigns reflect diverging approaches on accomplishing the city’s urgent priorities, including tackling the $200 million repair backlog for streets and sidewalks and the development of a new Medford High School.
Medford
The Medford municipal election features a highly contested City Council race with incumbents Zac Bears and Matt Leming both seeking election to an at-large City Councilor seat. Both candidates are 32 years old and affiliated with the Democratic Party, and each highlights experience and plans aimed at addressing housing affordability, city infrastructure, and education needs.
Top-line campaign developments
The race centers on local priorities including the city budget, housing affordability, major repairs for streets and sidewalks, and planning for a new Medford High School. Each incumbent emphasizes collaborative approaches and data-driven decision making while pointing to different accomplishments from previous terms on the council.
Candidate: Zac Bears
Zac Bears is 32 years old and affiliated with the Democratic Party. His family includes his father Bruce, mother Laura, and sister Isabelle. Bears graduated from Medford High School in 2011 and from UMass Amherst in 2015 with degrees in Economics and Political Science. He currently works as a nonprofit finance and operations director since 2022 and has past experience as an executive director, economist for the Bureau of Labor Statistics, labor union communications staff member, and self-employed consultant. Bears has served as a Medford City Councilor from 2020 to present. Bears’ campaign website: zacbears.com
Bears frames his campaign around a stated goal to create and implement a transformative plan for Medford’s future, focusing on funding, housing affordability, vibrant business districts, and inclusive government. He highlights specific municipal challenges, including broken streets, understaffed city services, a $200 million repair backlog for streets and sidewalks, and the need for a new Medford High School.
Throughout his term, Bears has accomplished passing the city’s first Budget Ordinance, establishing a Financial Task Force, and raising revenue. Notable ordinances passed during his term include an Affordable Housing Trust Fund, significant investment in schools, and various environmental protection ordinances. Bears stresses listening to residents and engaging them in decision-making processes and says his platform is backed by the grassroots 2025 Medford People’s Platform.
Candidate: Matt Leming
Incumbent Matt Leming, also 32 and a Democrat, is running for City Councilor at-large seat. Leming is married and has a sister in Oregon and parents in Oklahoma. His educational background includes a B.S./M.S. in Computer Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Ph.D. in Computational Neuroscience from the University of Cambridge. He currently works as an AI scientist involved in dementia diagnostics and is a military reserve officer. Leming previously served one term on the Medford City Council. Leming’s website: mattleming.com
Leming highlights accomplishments from his previous term involving housing investments, road repairs, and school funding. He identifies housing affordability and the city budget as pressing issues and links those concerns to state laws that affect municipal budgeting and development capacity. Leming proposes clarifying permitting processes for town squares and changing incentives for building affordable housing. He emphasizes making data-driven decisions, draws on military experience to connect with veterans, and supports road safety, veterans’ services, and environmentally friendly policies.
On the question of education infrastructure, Leming is in favor of placing a debt exclusion for a new high school on the ballot following recommendations from the high school building committee.
How the campaigns compare
Both candidates present experience in city governance and overlapping priorities: addressing housing affordability, fixing local infrastructure, and securing school funding. Bears foregrounds fiscal tools and organizing community-driven platforms, pointing to the passage of budget-related ordinances and revenue measures. Leming emphasizes technical expertise, data-driven planning, and clarifying development rules to change incentives for affordable housing. Each candidate presents a plan to work collaboratively with residents and stakeholders to guide municipal decisions.
What voters should know now
This contest is focused on local service delivery and long-term planning. Key decision points for voters include how each candidate proposes to tackle the stated $200 million repair backlog for streets and sidewalks, plans for a new Medford High School, and proposed approaches to funding and incentives for affordable housing. Voters can compare the incumbents’ stated accomplishments, current occupations, and proposed next steps as they prepare to cast ballots in the municipal election.
FAQ
What is Zac Bears’ campaign website?
Bears’ campaign website: zacbears.com
What is Leming’s website?
Leming’s website: mattleming.com
How old is Zac Bears and what is his party affiliation?
Zac Bears is 32 years old and affiliated with the Democratic Party.
How old is Matt Leming and what is his party affiliation?
Incumbent Matt Leming, also 32 and a Democrat, is running for City Councilor at-large seat.
What priorities does Zac Bears emphasize?
Bears aims to create and implement a transformative plan for Medford’s future, focusing on funding, housing affordability, vibrant business districts, and inclusive government.
What municipal problems does Bears highlight?
Bears highlights issues such as broken streets, understaffed city services, a $200 million repair backlog for streets and sidewalks, and the need for a new Medford High School.
What are some of Bears’ accomplishments while in office?
Throughout his term, Bears has accomplished passing the city’s first Budget Ordinance, establishing a Financial Task Force, and raising revenue.
What is Matt Leming’s educational and professional background?
Educational background: B.S./M.S. in Computer Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Ph.D. in Computational Neuroscience from the University of Cambridge. Currently works as an AI scientist involved in dementia diagnostics and is a military reserve officer.
What budgeting and school position does Leming support?
He is in favor of placing a debt exclusion for a new high school on the ballot following recommendations from the high school building committee.
At-a-glance candidate comparison
| Candidate | Age | Party | Current Role / Experience | Website | Top stated priorities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zac Bears | 32 | Democratic Party | Medford City Councilor (2020–present); nonprofit finance and operations director since 2022; former economist and executive director | zacbears.com | Funding, housing affordability, vibrant business districts, inclusive government; addressing broken streets, understaffed city services, $200 million repair backlog for streets and sidewalks, new Medford High School |
| Matt Leming | 32 | Democrat | Former Medford City Councilor (one term); AI scientist in dementia diagnostics; military reserve officer; B.S./M.S. and Ph.D. in computational fields | mattleming.com | Housing affordability and city budget reform, clarifying permitting processes for town squares, changing incentives for building affordable housing, road safety, support for veterans, environmentally friendly policies, support for placing a debt exclusion for a new high school on the ballot following recommendations from the high school building committee |
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Additional Resources
- Tufts Daily: Medford Preliminary Election Updates
- Patch: Matt Leming Candidate Profile
- Tufts Daily: Medford Elections Candidate Field
- Google Search: Medford elections
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Election
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