The political winds continue to blow eerily silent in the upcoming city council election, but that could change over the next couple of weeks.

City-wide, former Councilors Bill Samaras and Corey Belanger are mulling another run for office, with people close to both indicating a decision is expected in the next couple of weeks.

Incumbent Centralville (District 2) Councilor, Corey Robinson, is also exploring an at-large run, though recent discussions haven’t shown him to be in any particular rush to decide between that option or staying in his district. And there are some folks speculating that Upper Highlands (District 8) Councilor, Erik Gitschier, might launch a run across the city.

In the district races, other than rumblings that School Committee member Suzie Chhoun would run in District 5 (South Lowell) against Kim Scott, all’s been quiet on that front. Until now.

InsideLowell is hearing downtown resident and business owner Craig Faulkner is weighing a challenge to District 4 Councilor Wayne Jenness.

While multiple requests for comment over the weekend went unanswered, people “in the know” insist he has given it serious consideration.

A Faulkner run would be an interesting twist, given that he was a strong supporter of Jenness in 2021. Faulkner’s restaurant and bar, Warp & Weft, hosted both a campaign fundraiser and victory party for the Jenness campaign, as well as a re-election kickoff party in November of 2022.

There is still plenty of time for other potential candidates to emerge, as paperwork and signatures don’t have to be filed until July 18th. And as the names discussed above eventually make their intentions clear, the respective races will begin to take shape.

That said, recent elections had candidates already throwing their hat in the ring well before this point in the year. And as we look at the strength of the incumbents in the 2021 voting, it’s hard to see many new names other than those mentioned above entering the fray this cycle.