Josh Kraft, who filed his candidacy papers for Boston mayor Monday, faces a tough road against incumbent Michelle Wu. But but he’d be no shoo-in even if Wu decides against re-election.

Kraft, son of Patriots owner Robert Kraft, is smart to get a head start raising money, organizing a campaign and boning up on the issues but he certainly would not be the only candidate if Wu, who just had her third child, bows out.

Wu has given no indication she isn’t running, but delayed her State of the City meeting until March and has been slowly getting back into governing – working from home and doing Zoom meetings.

“I think we will, I’ll see how things unfold,” Wu said when asked about the upcoming campaign on WGBH Radio on Monday. “What I’ll say is this, I’m now honored, blessed, to be in my 12th  year serving the city in a public capacity – and so knowing the city, knowing how residents care about every little issue – whether it’s a parking garage or a zoning plan or a tax bill, Boston residents expect you to know what’s happening, have clear positions, get right in there and very clearly explain how you’re going to make things better.”

That shot at Kraft – who has yet to give any interviews or articulate any positions – could indicate Wu is itching for the fight.

But if Wu decides somehow the demands of the new baby are too much, City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune would be a formidable replacement challenger. She is a Harvard-educated Haitian American woman who would make history as Boston’s first Black mayor.

If liberals and the Black community coalesce around her, Louijeune would have a strong base to run from – much stronger than Kraft, who projects as a moderate targeting more traditional Bostonian voters.

Louijeune would be a cause celebre in the progressive community if she did run and would probably be vaulted to frontrunner status over Kraft.

Wu would probably endorse Louijeune over Kraft, giving her a huge advantage.

Louijeune, who was born and raised in Boston to Haitian immigrants, describes herself on the city web site as a “grounded, thoughtful and inclusive leader.”

“Ruthzee’s journey is deeply rooted in the fabric of Boston,” her biography reads.

That would be a huge contrast to Kraft, who is from Chestnut Hill and only recently moved to the North End to a $2 million condo.

Asked what her political ambitions were, Louijeune said last year that she plans to take “it one job at a time right now” and is focusing on her council work as well as her legal work.

“I like the direction the city is going in,” she told Boston Magazine. “I like the bend toward progress and focusing on the issues that we’ve got to address, and I hope that continues.”

City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune speaks at a City Council hearing Monday on mayor’s refiled tax classification home-rule petition. (Nancy Lane/Boston Herald)