Mayor Michelle Wu seems determined not just to trounce Josh Kraft at the voting booth but to trip up his family’s bid to build a new, 25,000 seat soccer stadium in Everett. This political double shot could cost Kraft’s father, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, millions of dollars in mitigation costs to build a new home for the New England Revolution close to Boston. The Boston mayor’s administration and campaign – in the middle of the mayoral contest – blindsided the Kraft Group, which is owned by Robert, by charging they are not ponying up enough mitigation money for the stadium and not taking negotiations seriously. “Josh Kraft and his family continue to treat fair negotiations with the City of Boston over their for-profit soccer stadium as a joke,” Wu campaign manager Julia Leja said. “For more than six months, they have failed to provide basic project information to the city, while sticking to a lowball mitigation offer that is totally unacceptable to Boston residents.” The heightened tension over the proposed stadium comes during the same week a new poll showed Wu beating Josh Kraft by 30 points in the mayoral race. It’s no coincidence that Wu has decided to keep her foot on Kraft’s throat over the stadium plan while beating him soundly in the polls. She’s a political animal and is showing her true colors by using cutthroat tactics. She also holds most of the cards in this deal. Robert Kraft needs the city of Boston’s cooperation for the soccer stadium because it’s on the Charlestown border and will cause major traffic and other disruptions. Kraft also wants the stadium to compete for outdoor concert venues – a lucrative part of the plan. Boston officials say the city has requested that mitigation be focused on transportation; climate resilience, open space, and noise; job creation and supplier diversity; and overall community benefits. The city wants millions more in mitigation than the $750,000 offered by the Krafts. Climate resilience? Supplier diversity? That’s a lot to ask for a stadium that isn’t even in the city of Boston’s borders. Now Kraft has to adjust his plans to adopt Wu’s agenda? So something other than just the stadium is going on here. It’s ugly politics rearing its head. Or, as a Kraft spokesperson said, “We are deeply disappointed that politics and grandstanding seem to have taken precedence over thoughtful analysis and collaboration. This simply impedes progress and economic development for the City of Everett, the City of Boston, and the Commonwealth.” The stalemate between the Wu administration and the Krafts is now in the hands of a mediator, who will have the difficult job of figuring out a compromise that will probably not satisfy either side. Josh Kraft has promised to recuse himself from any negotiations over the stadium if he’s elected mayor, but Wu knows the conflict of interest charge is a powerful issue for her. Wu is saying ‘who do you stand with, Josh, the city or your family?’ Kraft has answered the question but that won’t stop Wu from making the charge. Like other things she claims about Kraft, this one doesn’t pass the smell test. Wu badly wants to win – both on Election Day and at the bargaining table.