Kim Driscoll, the 73rd lieutenant governor of Massachusetts and a former mayor of Salem, will address local leaders during the MMA’s Annual Business Meeting, when MMA members will also hear from U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and will discuss four policy resolutions.

Driscoll and Gov. Maura Healey made history when they took office in 2023 as the first all-women executive team to run the state. They have been taking on many of the state’s biggest challenges, including the statewide housing shortage, climate change, an emergency shelter crisis, infrastructure needs and economic development, while emphasizing the state-local partnership.

Given her extensive municipal experience, Driscoll has a prominent role in maintaining the administration’s relationships with local leaders across the state, including ongoing advocacy for legislation to improve local government operations. She also presides over the state’s Local Government Advisory Commission, which brings together administration officials and municipal leaders to discuss pressing issues throughout the year.

Driscoll also made history with her election in 2005 as the first woman to lead Salem — the city’s 50th mayor. Driscoll was previously chief legal counsel and then deputy city manager in Chelsea, community development director in Beverly, a councillor in Salem, and an intern in Salem’s Planning Department.

Driscoll majored in political science and played basketball at Salem State University before earning a law degree at the Massachusetts School of Law.

In Salem, Driscoll was credited with helping to improve the city’s finances, overseeing infrastructure upgrades, investing in public school improvements, championing climate initiatives, prioritizing downtown and waterfront revitalization, and promoting equality, among other accomplishments.

As a local official, she had been actively involved in the MMA and served as president of the Massachusetts Mayors’ Association in 2012. She also served as chair of the North Shore Coalition of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, and served on the Massachusetts Workforce Development Board, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Local Government Advisory Committee, the Massachusetts Seaport Economic Council, and the Massachusetts Economic Development Planning Council.