A push by two Boston city councilors to bypass a special election for Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson’s district seat after she resigns is raising questions about why a different approach was taken two years ago with another Council departure.

City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune and Councilor Liz Breadon filed a home rule petition Monday that would waive a special election in the event of a vacancy more than 180 days prior to the general election, as required by the city charter.

It would also call for seating the winner of the District 7 race “as expeditiously as possible after election results have been certified” for the citywide fall election. As a result, the seat would remain vacant for a time after Fernandes Anderson, a 46-year-old second-term councilor, resigns.

“Given the accelerated timeline, the risk of excluding residents from the process is significant,” Louijeune said in a statement. “With the general election approaching later this year, it would be inequitable to ask the public to participate in such a hastened process that would leave voices out.”

The petition is responsive to Fernandes Anderson’s stated intention to resign at an undisclosed date after signing a plea deal last week that will see her plead guilty to two federal public corruption charges. The charges are tied to a kickback scheme the feds say she carried out at City Hall. A plea hearing has been scheduled for May 5, per a Monday court filing, and prosecutors plan to recommend a yearlong prison sentence.

It’s already raising questions, however, about why the City Council chose to proceed with a special election under a similar timeline two years ago, when Kenzie Bok departed the body in April 2023 to lead the Boston Housing Authority.

Bok, who represented District 8, was appointed to the role by Mayor Michelle Wu. Councilor Sharon Durkan, who worked for Wu as a political fundraiser and received her endorsement in the race, was tapped to serve the remainder of Bok’s term after winning a special election three months later, in July 2023.

“Tania Fernandes Anderson’s announcement that she would resign from her seat comes on an almost identical timeline to Bok’s, but the reaction from the City Council has been much different,” Gregory Maynard, executive director of the Boston Policy Institute, said in a statement. “Councilors Louijeune and Breadon were both on the Council in 2023, and need to explain why Roxbury-based District 7 can afford to wait a few months for a new city councilor, but Beacon Hill and Back Bay-based District 8 could not.”

Erin Murphy, an at-large councilor who has a dueling measure filed for Wednesday’s Council meeting that calls for the “prompt scheduling of a special election to fill the vacancy in District 7,” also questioned the disparate approaches.

“Two years ago, when Councilor Kenzie Bok resigned, we promptly held a special election in District 8,” Murphy said in a statement. “Sharon Durkan and others ran, and voters had their say, despite it being an election year. Why should District 7 be treated differently?”

Murphy argued that “value of ensuring that all residents have representation in city governance outweighs” concerns around cost and voter fatigue that have been raised by those who want to forego a special election.

“District 7, Boston’s largest Black community, has historically faced underrepresentation and economic challenges,” Murphy said. “Denying them a voice now only perpetuates this injustice.”

Breadon and Louijeune say, however, that circumstances are different this year.

The city’s Elections Department was placed under state receivership after widespread ballot shortages hampered last fall’s presidential election, and Secretary of State William Galvin opposes a special election, their proposed petition states.

It also mentions that “organizing and holding multiple municipal elections in a single year would place financial burden on the City of Boston during a time of federal uncertainty.”

Breadon said she wasn’t inclined to compare the two situations, saying that this time, there’s uncertainty around when Fernandes Anderson will resign, and the Districts 7 and 8 have “very different electorates.” District 7, which includes Roxbury, Dorchester, Fenway and part of the South End, is more diverse, she said.

“I think the notion that you would elect somebody and then three weeks later you would have another election is confusing for people,” Breadon told the Herald. “The community wants an opportunity to vet their candidates, hear them out and just make a good, well-informed decision about who they want to be their next city councilor.”

Louijeune also pushed back on the criticism.

“We have heard from community members and leaders that a special election would not be in the best interest of the residents of District 7,” Louijeune said in a statement. “That’s what I care most about. In this unfortunate and unique situation, residents have expressed that they would like time to engage with candidates, to increase voter turnout and participation, and to ensure that voters are knowledgeable about the election to yield the best councilor for their district.”

Councilors Murphy and Ed Flynn disagree.

“Our top priority must be what’s in the best interest of the residents of District 7,” Flynn said in a statement. “We cannot disenfranchise communities of color by delaying an election to determine their next city councilor. Now is the time for positive leadership. We need to avoid political games when it comes to civil rights.”

Mayor Wu’s office declined to take a position.

“The Elections Department stands ready to administer a special election under the city charter as written, but we will review any legislation passed by the Council,” a city spokesperson said in a statement. “Mayor Wu and her administration are focused on ensuring direct access to resources and services for the residents of District 7, and the mayor has directed additional staff to support the neighborhood services liaisons covering District 7 so that there will be clear coordination and additional capacity.”

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A Sept. 9 preliminary election would be triggered with at least three candidates.

The District 7 field thus far includes Said Ahmed, founder of Boston United, a youth track program; Said Abdikarim, who previously ran for an at-large Council seat; Mavrick Afonso, a past City Hall parks employee who works for the state’s Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities; and Samuel Hurtado, who previously worked for Councilor and later Acting Mayor Kim Janey and is now the business manager in the city’s Economic Opportunity and Inclusion Cabinet.