Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards is planning a run for state Senate

Boston City Councilor Lydia Edwards is eyeing her chance at heading to the State House.

The District 1 councilor from East Boston announced on Thursday her intention to run for the 1st Suffolk and Middlesex District seat expected to be left vacant by state Sen. Joseph Boncore.

Boncore, a Winthrop Democrat, has said he will accept the position of CEO at the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, although he has not yet done so, according to The Boston Globe‘s Adrian Walker and confirmed by Politico. Edwards is anticipated to run only if Boncore — who the newspaper could not reach for comment on Wednesday — steps down from his Senate seat.

“Sen. Boncore has been a steadfast partner in the Senate and has served the public with strength and a keen sense of right and wrong, using his moral compass and thoughtful advocacy to stand up for the residents of this district, and it would be a great honor to follow his legacy,” Edwards said in a statement on Thursday morning. “As he explores the next chapter of his career, I am prepared to begin mine.

“This is my path: I will be a candidate for Senate this fall,” she continued. “I’m proud to look back on the people I have helped, and I know that I have more in me to give. When Senator Boncore steps down, I will formally step up.”

Boncore’s resignation would trigger a special election for later this year that would likely include East Boston state Rep. Adrian Madaro and Anthony D’Ambrosio, of Revere, in the field of candidates, according to Walker’s column.

Edwards, 40, ran for the seat in 2016 but lost to Boncore. Should she run again, she does not have to give up her council seat in order to do so.

A strong advocate for housing and development reform on the council, Edwards created legislation that reworked the city’s zoning code to include fair housing and equity considerations for large developments.

Edwards told the Globe she has wanted to serve the Senate district since she was a legal services attorney.

“Much of my advocacy got stopped by a lack of good laws,” she said. “I’ve continued to write laws that advocate for poor people and housing policy, and much of that work ends up at the State House. I want to be able to do more for more people.”