Martin Joseph Walsh (born April 10, 1967) is an American politician and trade union official who served as the mayor of Boston from 2014 to 2021 and as the 29th United States Secretary of Labor from 2021 to 2023.

"[21][22] In 2013, Walsh was one of several legislators that signed onto a joint petition introduced by Representative Sarah Peake and Senator Patricia D. Jehlen that established the Special Commission on LGBT Aging.

[29] Walsh was one of a number of co-sponsors on legislation to have Massachusetts join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact which passed in the House on July 9, 2008.

[12] In 2008, Walsh supported John H. Rogers's unsuccessful effort to beat out Robert DeLeo to serve as the next speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

[38] He resigned as general agent in April 2013 when he announced that he was running for mayor, but at the time retained his position as president of Laborer's Union Local 223.

[6] David Scharfenberg of WBUR considered Walsh's candidacy as being, "built on his against-the-odds biography: a son of Irish immigrants who overcame a childhood fight against cancer and a young adult's struggle with alcoholism.

[46] As a result, he advanced to the general election, facing second place vote-getter Boston City Councilor John R. Connolly, who received 17.2% of the vote.

[49] Ryan also credited the general election endorsements of eliminated mayoral candidates John Barros, Felix G. Arroyo, and Charlotte Golar Richie as helping Walsh to overcome Connolly's initial polling lead.

He advanced to the general election and faced second place vote-getter, Boston City Councilor Tito Jackson, who had received 29% of the vote.

[60] Walsh was seen as friendly towards real estate developers throughout his mayoralty, and Boston underwent a substantial building boom during his seven years in office.

[61] During the course of his mayoralty, officials in Boston granted approval to 7.7 million square feet of real estate developments, including more than 40,000 more housing units.

[62] Steve LeBlanc of The Associated Press wrote in 2021, "during his tenure as mayor, Walsh has overseen the city's ongoing rejuvenation, which has led to challenges that include gentrification and rising housing costs.

[64] Similarly, Bill Forry of the Dorchester Reporter wrote that, prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Walsh's tenure was characterized by, "remarkable growth and relative peace and prosperity.

[10] Days after declaring a state of emergency, he suspended all construction projects and closing all of the Boston Public Library locations and city community centers.

[10][86][87][88] On March 16, 2020, Walsh announced the Boston Resiliency Fund, a city-led fundraising effort to support programs and charities serving those impacted by the pandemic.

[93] Later that year, Walsh unveiled plans to renovate a facility to house hundreds of homeless people displaced due to the closure of the Long Island Bridge.

While Walsh, in 2019, outlined plans to deal with the homelessness crisis at this so-called Mass and Cass (also known as the "Methadone Mile"), it persisted to be a problem when he left office in 2021.

[111][112] The racial equity fund launched months later,[113] with Walsh stating it would invest in nonprofits that, "empower Black and brown residents in economic development, in public health, in youth employment, in education, in the arts, and other areas.

[127] Walsh tendered his resignation from the Department of Labor effective March 11, 2023 in order to serve as the executive director of the players' union of the National Hockey League.

This included reversing a Trump administration rule that prohibited retirement fund managers from considering environmental, social, and corporate governance factors when reaching decisions in regards to investment.

Soon after taking office, commenting on the resistance of some players to wearing LGBTQ pride-themed warmup jerseys, Walsh remarked, At the end of the day, it's up to the individual about what they want to do.

[147][149] In September 2023, Paul Bissonnette made claims on his hockey podcast Spittin' Chiclets alleging that he had been informed by a whistleblower that Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Mike Babcock was demanding to see photographs stored on the private phones of the team's players.

[145] An agreement was reached by the parties in February 2024 to allow players to compete in both the 2026 and 2030 Winter Olympics[150] In 2023, Walsh began to increase his public profile in Boston.

The nomination came at a time when Biden was receiving pressure from members of the House Democratic Caucus to fill open seats on the board due to concerns regarding slow delivery of mail.

[158] Walsh declared that he did not intend to resign his players union leadership position if confirmed, noting that the duties postal service board membership are not a full-time job.

"[153] On June 13, Republican senators JD Vance, Bill Hagerty, Mike Lee, Roger Marshall, Eric Schmitt, and Tommy Tuberville pledged to slow the confirmation of Walsh and a number of other pending Biden nominees for federal office and judgeships as a form of protest over the conviction of Donald Trump in New York State criminal court.

"[8] He has further recounted that he sought help for his alcoholism by entering a detox program sometime after hitting "rock bottom" in April 1995 when he was asked to leave a Boston Bruins ice hockey match due to his excessive drunkenness.

[167] Walsh's experience with addiction was a component of the life story of him overcoming adversity which retold as a portion of his messaging to voters during the 2013 mayoral election.

[123] After he delivered the college's 2014 commencement address, Walsh was presented with an honorary degree by the Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology for his "commitment to civic responsibility, access to quality education, and workforce development".

[168] After he delivered the university's 2018 commencement address, the Wentworth Institute of Technology awarded Walsh an honorary doctorate of engineering from its technical school.