[{"slug": "caroline-hunter", "name": "Caroline Hunter", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/hunter.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "louise-venden", "name": "Louise Venden", "blurb": "

Although her nomination papers were rejected on the final day of eligibility, Louise Venden is running a write-in campaign for City Council. She has previously served as a member of Provincetown's Select Board and on Provincetown's Finance Committee. Louise promises to \"bridge the divide,\" having worked with ABC in the past while accepting CCC's endorsement this cycle.

Outside of politics, she has experience as a real estate bank loan officer.

", "img_url": "/media/louise-square-image2x.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "jia-jing-lee", "name": "Jia-Jing Lee", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/lee.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "elizabeth-hudson", "name": "Elizabeth Hudson", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.50.03PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "jane-hirschi", "name": "Jane Hirschi", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.46.51PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "richard-harding", "name": "Richard Harding", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.45.09PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "jose-luis-rojas-villarreal", "name": "Jos\u00e9 Luis Rojas Villarreal", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/jose.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "anne-coburn", "name": "Anne Coburn", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/250714i-Anne-Coburn.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "alex-bowers", "name": "Alex Bowers", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/alex.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "arjun-jaikumar", "name": "Arjun Jaikumar", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/arjun.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "caitlin-dube", "name": "Caitlin Dube", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/dube.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "jess-goetz", "name": "Jess Goetz", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/jess.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "stanislav-rivkin", "name": "Stanislav Rivkin", "blurb": "

Stanislav \"Stan\" Rivkin was born in Uzbekistan and immigrated to the US when he was young. Stan credits his family's experience navigating social services and building community with his desire to run for office and his platform centers around the preservation and expansion of Cambridge's social programs. For example, Stan organized and delivered a petition opposing the closing of the Transitional Wellness Center/Spaulding Shelter.

Rivkin is a vocal critic of the Trump administration and has asserted that Cambridge the city's response to the Trump administration has been \"inadequate\".

Throughout his career, Stan has mostly worked in higher education and its administration and he currently serves as Associate Director of Admissions at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_9.04.17PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "alborz-bejnood", "name": "Alborz Bejnood", "blurb": "

Alborz Bejnood is a computational scientist at a Tango Therapeutics, a Boston-based cancer drug biotechnology company.

", "img_url": "/media/alborz.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of Alborz", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "eugenia-schraa-huh", "name": "Eugenia Schraa Huh", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Schraa-167307756.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "david-j-weinstein", "name": "David J. Weinstein", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-18_at_8.37.34AM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "lilly-havstad", "name": "Lilly Havstad", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot2025-09-05at4.10.25PM.webp", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "melanie-gause", "name": "Melanie Gause", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/MelG.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "zion-sherin", "name": "Zion Sherin", "blurb": "

Zion Sherin is new to Cambridge, municipal politics, and voting, having registered in Cambridge for the first time this year. Zion is a registered Independent, and has also been endorsed by the Yankee National Party, a center-left New England secessionist party that avows a social democrat ideology.

Zion is a regular poster on Nextdoor and attendee at Neighborhood Conservation District meetings.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.39.29PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "cathie-zusy", "name": "Catherine \"Cathie\" Zusy", "blurb": "

A Cambridge resident for over 25 years, Cathie Zusy is a former museum curator who has been very active in local boards and organizations for many years, including Magazine Beach Partners and the Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association. Indeed, she is sometimes known as the \"Magazine Beach Lady\" for her years-long efforts to secure public investment for the revitalization of Magazine Beach Park along the Charles River. She was also previously on the board of Cambridge Day.

Cathie was sworn into her seat on City Council in the fall 2024 after the passing of Joan Pickett. (In Cambridge's system, vacancies are treated as similar to a re-run of the ballots, instead of requiring a special election or appointment.)

While now a registered Democrat, she has previously voted in Republican primary elections.

", "img_url": "/media/catherine-zusy.5c51a096ddfc.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "ayah-al-zubi", "name": "Ayah Al-Zubi", "blurb": "

Ayah Al-Zubi moved to Cambridge to attend Harvard, from which she graduated in May 2023. She has been involved in after-school sports programs in area schools, for instance coaching a basketball program at Baldwin Elementary School (through Harvard\u2019s Phillips Brooks House Association).

She ran for city council in 2023 and was eliminated in the final round of transfers.

Ayah is a member of Boston DSA and advocates for Democratic Socialism.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-21_at_5.50.09PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "patty-nolan", "name": "Patricia \"Patty\" Nolan", "blurb": "

Patty Nolan grew up in Chicago and Connecticut. She first moved to Cambridge to attend Harvard, graduating in 1980. Patty then lived and worked in New York City, and attended Yale for business school. She has worked in corporate consulting at McKinsey and the non-profit sector.

Patty returned to Cambridge in 1991, and has been actively involved in local politics since, for instance serving on the Board of Cambridge School Volunteers. She was first elected to the school committee in 2005 and served for almost 14 years. She has served three terms on City Council and seeks her fourth.

On the council, she has pushed back against \"either-or\" framing, casting herself as a moderating, nuanced voice within binary debates.

She is a landlord; she rents out the second unit in her two-family home.

", "img_url": "/media/patty.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "ned-melanson", "name": "Ned Melanson", "blurb": "

Ned Melanson is a public defender and disability attorney running as a first-time challenger. He rents in Cambridgeport and is on strike with the Massachusetts Bar Advocates.

A self-described \"all-around progressive urbanist,\" Melanson is running on three core platforms: safe and accessible streets, more housing of all kinds, and bracing the city for the effects of the federal administration.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.33.42PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "elizabeth-bisio", "name": "Elizabeth Bisio", "blurb": "

Elizabeth Bisio is a startup founder, tech executive, and former ER nurse renting in Cambridge Crossing. She has not filled out any candidate questionnaires published to public domain (yet).

Elizabeth is a first time candidate. In interviews, she has said the City should \"slow down\" implementation of the Cycling Safety Organization, and instead focus on intersections. She is against any project that eliminates parking \"without clear alternatives.\"

She has a Springer Spaniel, a cat, and two horses.

", "img_url": "/media/bisio.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "dana-bullister", "name": "Dana Bullister", "blurb": "

Dana Bullister is a second-time challenger. A policy design researcher and data scientist now pursuing her PhD at Northeastern, Dana is a longtime renter in Cambridge. She does not own a car and gets around via multimodal transit.

During her time in Cambridge, Dana has worked at various tech companies and is active in the local innovation scene. She volunteers extensively and currently serves as the chair of the board of the YWCA. She has exhaustive policy proposals on her campaign website, and is the only candidate to take a stance on goat grazing policy.

In her first run in 2021, Dana accepted an endorsement from Cambridge Citizens Coalition. Dana went on to disavow CCC's public behavior in a Medium comment. She did not seek CCC's endorsement in 2025.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.26.47PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "marc-mcgovern", "name": "Marc McGovern", "blurb": "

Marc McGovern was born in Cambridge and has spent much of the last two decades in elected office, first on the School Committee and then on the City Council. He is also active in the Cambridge Democratic City Committee.

Outside of politics, Marc is a licensed social worker, and has continued to work part-time as one while on the council. He's now a consultant with the Suffolk County Juvenile Court, conducting family assessments for families involved in the foster care system.

As the second most tenured councillor, Marc has built his political career on making himself available to constituents.

", "img_url": "/media/marc-mcgovern.347688683213.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "jivan-sobrinho-wheeler", "name": "Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler", "blurb": "

Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler has lived in Cambridge since 2017 and has served two non-consecutive terms on the city council, elected in 2019 in 2023.

Professionally, Jivan has worked as a field and operations manager for a mayoral campaign in New Haven, Connecticut, and as New England Progressive Governance Director for the Working Families Party. Before moving to Cambridge, he worked at consultancy groups in Portland, Maine and the New York City area.

Jivan has worked with Our Revolution Cambridge and is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. He also speaks three languages.

", "img_url": "/media/jivan-sobrinho-wheeler.485805737516.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "john-hanratty", "name": "John Hanratty", "blurb": "

John Hanratty has lived in Cambridge for over 25 years. He's had a long career as a tech executive and entrepreneur, retiring from full-time work in 2019.

John cites his opposition to the Cycling Safety Ordinance and his subsequent \"community crusade in Porter Square\" as the issue that drew him into city politics. He was heavily involved in suing the city of Cambridge over its protected bike lane network (all lawsuits failed or were rejected).

In the time since, he founded the Neighborhood 9 Coalition, which has, among other things, opposed affordable housing projects in the area--in particular highlighting potential developments on parking lots next to his home in Porter Square.

", "img_url": "/media/john-hanratty.7e91ae54623f-1911486057.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "ayesha-wilson", "name": "Ayesha Wilson", "blurb": "

Ayesha Wilson grew up in Cambridge public housing and attended Cambridge Rindge and Latin. She earned a Master's in Social Work and has worked as Mental Health Clinician and a Senior Teacher-Counselor for Cambridge Housing Authority's Work Force Program, an after-school educational enrichment and work-readiness program for low-income teens in Cambridge public housing.

Ayesha is seeking re-election after serving her first term on the Council. She is the only active union member among incumbents and she's the 3rd Black woman to serve. Prior to being elected to the Council, Ayesha served two terms on the School Committee.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-21_at_7.33.13PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "laqueen-battle", "name": "LaQueen Battle", "blurb": "

LaQueen Battle is a first-time candidate for both City Council and School Committee. A Certified Nursing Assistant/Medical Assistant and CHA resident, LaQueen's run for Council and School Committee is informed by her experience with navigating housing insecurity and social services as a domestic violence survivor, and in community activism.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.55.32PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "peter-hsu", "name": "Peter Hsu", "blurb": "

Dr. Peter Hsu is a practicing physician and second-time challenger for Cambridge City Council. He is on staff at Beth Israel and has lived in Cambridge for five years. Peter is running on a public health platform and wants to boost social services, including addiction and housing support.

As relative newcomer to politics, Hsu and his positions do not fit neatly into the main dichotomies of Cambridge politics.

", "img_url": "/media/Peter-Hsu-20241108_16_1x1-v1.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "burhan-azeem", "name": "Burhan Azeem", "blurb": "

Burhan Azeem's family immigrated to the United States from Pakistan when he was young. They moved several times, and Burhan described how, as a brown Muslim immigrant living in the USA after 9-11, Cambridge was the first place he felt welcome.

He holds a Bachelor of Science from MIT and speaks three languages. He has studied sustainability and is passionate about mitigating climate change and its impacts. Burhan worked as a software engineer before his election to City Council in 2021, and worked two full-time jobs as as an engineer and city councillor until March of 2025.

Burhan previously served on the board of A Better Cambridge and founded the state-wide housing nonprofit Abundant Housing Massachusetts.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-22_at_5.40.12PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "sumbul-siddiqui", "name": "Sumbul Siddiqui", "blurb": "

Sumbul Siddiqui's family immigrated to the United States from Pakistan when she was 2, and they moved to Cambridge when they got a lottery spot in Cambridge's affordable housing system. While attending CRLS, she co-founded the Cambridge Youth Council (then the Cambridge Youth Involvement Subcommittee) as a way for students to engage with city government and policy.

Prior to her election, she was on the board of the Cambridge School Volunteers and was a member of Cambridge's Human Services Commission. Until she became mayor, she was an Attorney at Northeast Legal Aid, a nonprofit that provides legal assistance. In 2025, she taught a course on Social Policy at Simmons College.

She and Alanna Mallon hosted a podcast together from January 2018 to 2022.

Sumbul has been elected from raw number one votes in the last four elections.

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.34.48PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "luisa-de-paula-santos", "name": "Luisa de Paula Santos", "blurb": "", "img_url": "/media/luisa.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "robert-winters", "name": "Robert Winters", "blurb": "

Robert Winters is perhaps best known in Cambridge for maintaining a blog, titled Cambridge Civic Journal, about Cambridge politics; his notes about City Council meetings going back to 2006 are still available at his website. He started including videos, often with guests, in 2014. And he puts together a page with straightforward, non-editorialized candidate information for every election.

A mathematics PhD, Winters has taught at several area schools, including BU, MIT, and Harvard. Beginning in the 1980s, Winters served in several civic capacities, including in early initiatives with Cambridge's nascent recycling and composting programs, and on several boards and committees.

He has also been active on Twitter for many years. He has a long history of posting, engaging with, and liking content there that other people and organizations classify as transphobic, racist, sexist, Islamophobic, and pro-retaliatory-violence. For instance, he followed the well-known far-right, anti-LGBT+ LibsofTikTok account, and drew their attention to a local drag queen event at the Cambridge Public Library. Since that account is notorious for inciting violence, the Cambridge Police ended up deploying to protect residents in response.

When questioned about this history at a candidate forum in 2023, he said he didn't remember or liked something he found funny.

A perennial challenger candidate, Winters first sought election in the 1990s.

", "img_url": "/media/winters.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "e-denise-simmons", "name": "E. Denise Simmons", "blurb": "

Born and raised in Cambridge, Denise Simmons has been active in the Cambridge community for many years.

Denise served as Executive Director of the Cambridge Civic Unity Committee in the 1980s, a city established committee dedicated to ending racial discrimination against veterans. She was a member of the Cambridge School Committee in the 1990s.

A member of city council since 2002, Denise is currently serves as Mayor for the third time. She is the first Black, openly-lesbian mayor in the United States and the first Black woman to be mayor in Massachusetts.

Denise is a political institution who has succeeded in maintaining her position on city council through decades of a changing city.

", "img_url": "/media/simmons.jpg", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}, {"slug": "tim-flaherty", "name": "Tim Flaherty", "blurb": "

As lifelong Cantabrigian, Tim Flaherty has a long history in the area. For instance, he previously ran for State Senate in 2007 and 2010, he coaches Little League in West Cambridge, and he has lectured at Carroll School of Management at Boston College.

He is a also prominent criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor and has represented a wide range of clients from the government, to politicians, and local influencers (Emmanuel Mervil of \u201cEverybody Gotta Eat\u201d).

Tim is currently representing Cambridge Council Paul Toner against the charges for frequenting a brothel ring, news of which broke earlier in 2025 and potentially influenced Paul Toner to not seek re-election. Toner endorsed and actively campaigns for Flaherty as his replacement.

He is on track to raise by far the most money in the 2025 election, passing $130,000, with a high average donation dollar amount.

Tim has his own legal controversy, covered at length in local publications. In brief, in 2016 he pleaded guilty to \"disrupting a state court proceeding\". His license to practice law was suspended, but reinstated in 2018 by the Supreme Judicial Court. It is worth noting that the witness tampering case was brought by US Attorney Carmen Ortiz (of Aaron Swartz infamy).

", "img_url": "/media/Screenshot_2025-09-17_at_8.58.27PM.png", "img_alt": "headshot of candidate", "comment": "", "order": null}]

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