The new Cambridge City Council was sworn in at City Hall, after which Sumbul Siddiqui was voted mayor by her fellow councillors.
Siddiqui, who served two prior terms as mayor from 2020-23, reached out to the community in remarks she read from her phone, even though, she joked, she’s a Millennial.
“Those who live in and rely on the city, from our local businesses, nonprofits, first responders and service providers to our universities, educators, institutions, and faith-based organizations: you’re the heart of Cambridge, and you push us to be better,” she said. “As we begin a new term today, we’ll do so with a vision that builds on the progress we’ve already made as a city, and with the relentless belief that we can always serve more actively, more boldly, more curiously.”
Proceedings were chaired by Acting City Clerk Paula Crane. Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., was supposed to be the featured speaker but was unable to attend due to “unforeseen circumstances.” Crane administered the oath of office to each councillor elect, each of whom acknowledged family members and close supporters who were in the chambers.
“Each of you has your own story. Why you ran for office, who inspired you,” said Crane during her remarks. “But what you all have in common is that you love your city, you love the people of Cambridge, and you want to make a positive difference in their lives. I applaud you.”
A new mayor selected
Siddiqui was elected unanimously on the first ballot, though the initial roll call ended with her tied with former mayor Marc McGovern at three votes apiece. Councillors Patty Nolan received two votes and Cathie Zusy one. Councillors are given the option to change their votes before a ballot round is ended and after Patty Nolan switched her vote to Siddiqui, the remaining councillors followed suit.
Outgoing mayor E. Denise Simmons did not seek an additional term as mayor, sources told Cambridge Day. Simmons has served three terms as mayor, from 2008-09, 2016-17, and 2024-25. She will now begin her 13th term on council.
Siddiqui showed a list of her priorities for the upcoming term that she had sent to some of her then fellow councillors-elect before inauguration day. Items included improving transportation through the city-wide shuttle bus, reducing gun violence, and monitoring the effects of the Trump administration on the city.
Siddiqui told Cambridge Day that since her previous terms as mayor in 2020 and 2022 were defined by response to the COVID-19 pandemic, she’s looking forward to setting her own agenda. “There’s other crises, but not having a global pandemic and doing steady work on the real issues will be exciting.”
Azeem as vice mayor
Councillor Burhan Azeem was elected Vice Mayor of Cambridge on the second ballot. Azeem had four votes on the first ballot, Nolan three, and Sobrinho-Wheeler and Zusy one apiece. In the second ballot, Azeem and Nolan both garnered four, and councillor Tim Flaherty voted for Zusy, then broke the tie by changing his vote to Azeem. The four Nolan voters then all changed their votes to Azeem as well.
Azeem, also referencing his phone, said “All nine city councilors here represent a different fraction of the city. “[But] we’re also quite united into our fight for affordability and our fight for a safer, for a fairer, for a more just city.”
After the proceedings, Azeem said housing “affordability is definitely the biggest issue on the table… there’s more to be done there.” He also anticipated “pushback from the federal government, budget cuts from the federal government that we’ll have to fill.”
When asked if he was surprised by the outcome of the vice mayor’s race, he said “I think that you never take anything for granted… there’s a lot of good options, a lot of good colleagues to vote for.”
Two new councillors seated
New to the council are Councillors Ayah Al-Zubi and Timothy Flaherty. The two councillors represent contrasting policy positions and backgrounds. Al-Zubi is a recent Harvard graduate who ran as a Democratic Socialist on a platform of improving housing affordability through the construction of social housing. Flaherty is a criminal defense attorney with three decades of experience who ran against last year’s changes to zoning that allow large-scale housing development in most areas of the city.
“I want to take a moment to thank each person whose door I knocked on and who took a moment to speak with me,” said Flaherty during the proceeding.
At a reception after the inaugural, he told Cambridge Day changing the new upzoning laws would be a top priority going into his term. “I think maybe it wasn’t the best decision in the world to upzone the entire city, every street, every block, every size lot, [incentivizing] the demolition of one, two and three-family homes for the construction of four-story apartment buildings which have absolutely zero component of affordability,” Flaherty said. “There’s a better way, and I’ve got some ideas about that, and I’m hoping maybe I can convince some of the other counselors to engage with me.”
The first regular city council meeting of the new term will begin at 5:30 PM on Monday, January 12th.
This story has been updated to add photos from the inaugural and comments from city councillors. Additionally, the vote count on the first ballot for vice mayor was corrected, as was the number of ballots needed to decide the mayor, and Rep. Katherine Clark’s intended role at the event.
A stronger
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You may want to correct this:
“Proceedings were chaired by Acting City Clerk Paula Crane, standing in for Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., who was unable to attend due to “unforeseen circumstances.””
The City Clerk has ALWAYS officiated the City Council inauguration.
How many voters bothered to notice they were electing a 24 year old in Al-Zubi to run our $1B budget? And after (rightly) critiquing the DOGE kids…
To hcr7: I am very happy the voters elected Ayah Al-Zubi to represent us on all matters, including the budget. My problem with the DOGE staff was that they were uninformed and not democratically chosen- neither is true of Ayah. I have had several meetings with her, as well as watched her in debates, and she is very well-informed and well-prepared- better prepared than some older councilors I have met with.
@hcr7 please to not malign the newly elected councilor Al-Zubi by comparing her to the unelected DOGE saboteurs.