Report: Menard won’t run for re-election

WOONSOCKET, R.I.—Woonsocket Mayor Susan Menard will not seek an eighth term.

Menard said in a statement Monday that it is time for someone else to take a leadership role in the city.

Menard has been mayor for 14 years. She was the city’s first female mayor and has served longer than any other chief executive since the city was incorporated in 1888. Before winning her first mayoral election in 1995, she served four years on the school committee and 10 years on the city council.

The 60-year-old Menard tells The Call of Woonsocket she is proud of what she has accomplished but does not have enthusiasm for the job since the death of her daughter in April. She wants to spend more time with her grandsons.

The Providence Journal reported that City Council President Leo Fontaine, former candidates Todd Brien and Michael Mello, Steven Lima and Raymond Riel have taken out papers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report