Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy, who lost her bid for Suffolk clerk of the Supreme Judicial Court this month, said dysfunction on the Council and a difficult working relationship with the Wu administration drove her to seek a new role.

Murphy, a moderate Democrat seen as an antagonist to the progressive Mayor Michelle Wu, said she has encountered considerable difficulty in getting any of her policies passed since joining the City Council in December 2021, due to a lack of support from the Wu administration and pushback from her Council colleagues.

“The work environment on the City Council has been extremely challenging in recent years,” Murphy said in a statement posted on social media. “I’ve faced significant obstacles and frustration, including a lack of support from the administration and meaningful progress on key issues.”

“These difficulties motivated me to seek a new role, believing it might offer a more effective way to serve our community,” she said, referring to the roughly $190,000 SJC clerk position. “I recognize that there will be ongoing challenges and uphill battles with my peers, but I remain hopeful that transparency, honesty and teamwork will create the environment needed to address the issues facing our city.”

Murphy, an at-large councilor who saw her opponent and presumptive winner of the SJC clerk race, attorney Allison Cartwright, endorsed by not only the mayor but a majority of the progressive-leaning City Council, added, “It’s crucial that we prioritize the well-being of our community over personal agendas.”

As a moderate city councilor, Murphy is in the minority on the 13-member body politically. She is joined by just two other moderate councilors, Ed Flynn and John FitzGerald, a number that dwindled from the four moderates seated last term.

She said she sees the “chaos and resistance” she’s encountered during her time on the City Council as having “created obstacles in advancing key initiatives,” some of which she sees as “critical issues facing our community.”

“Challenges such as commissioners, superintendents, and department heads not returning calls, the administration withholding key information, and colleagues working against my efforts have made the work more difficult,” Murphy said in a statement to the Herald.

Flynn, her closest ally on the Council and the body’s president last term, said it’s been difficult to get things done this term, given the political alliances between the Wu administration and a number of the councilors, some of whom have worked for the mayor and received her endorsement in last fall’s election.

“It’s been challenging to get hearings scheduled with various committee chairs, especially if the subject matter is controversial and not supported by the city administration,” Flynn told the Herald.

“It’s been a challenging environment on the Council when the city administration has a lot of political support on the body and the chairs of various committees are close allies of the administration,” he added.

Given those allegiances, Flynn, who is considering a mayoral run against Wu in 2025, said some councilors may be hesitant to work on issues that “might shed light on challenges the city is facing right now.”

Two former Wu staffers and progressives who received the mayor’s endorsement in last fall’s election, Enrique Pepén and Henry Santana, see things differently, saying that they have been committed to collaborating with their colleagues since joining the City Council last January.

“As a city councilor representing all of Boston, I am committed to working with my colleagues, regardless of political differences, to deliver for our residents,” Santana, an at-large councilor, said in a statement to the Herald. “I’m disappointed to hear these concerns, as collaboration is essential, and I make it a priority to engage in hearings that address community issues.”

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He said he co-chaired a hearing sponsored by Flynn and Murphy this past Thursday, referring to their push for increased staffing levels at the Boston Police Department, which has received pushback from BPD leadership and Mayor Wu.

“Boston deserves a City Council that works together to find solutions, even when we don’t always agree,” Santana said.

Pepén made similar remarks, when asked to respond to his colleagues’ comments.

“Collaborating with my colleagues on issues that impact our residents has been a priority of mine since day one,” Pepén said in a statement. “I’m proud to have co–sponsored various hearing orders with my colleagues and to have scheduled committee hearings pertaining to the committees I chair. We work best when we focus on collaborating and working for our residents.”

The Herald’s requests for comment from the mayor’s office, City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, and Councilor Sharon Durkan, a former Wu staffer endorsed by the mayor in last fall’s election, were not returned.

Boston City Hall (Nancy Lane/Boston Herald, File)