"I think it's one of Reeves' tricks," said Russell. "He's trying to divide us up."

Galluccio said he was not approached by Reeves prior to the meeting and that the Alliance councillors' attitude was "ludicrous."

"If they thought he was bluffing, they had the chance to call his bluff," Galluccio said.

Reeves admitted he might have switched his vote had it been the deciding factor in Galluccio's election.

But, Reeves said, his actions Wednesday were "sincere."

"I'm not making any votes that aren't well thought-out," said Reeves, who served as mayor for the past four years.

"[Wednesday's vote] had to do with determining if the Alliance candidates would support any one of their members," Reeves said. "I wanted to demonstrate that I was not unable to vote for someone else."

Reeves said he was "surprised" by the outcome of Wednesday's vote and that the Alliance members' indecisiveness would force Reeves to remain a candidate for mayor himself.

But Reeves said he will consider backing any candidate who supports educational reform in the public schools.

While the council remains in its longest deadlock since 1984, CCA-endorsed Duehay has filled in as Cambridge's acting mayor by virtue of being the council's longest-serving member.

In his duties as acting mayor, Duehay also serves as chair of the six-member school committee.

Duehay yesterday refused to predict the eventual outcome of the mayoral wrangling but said that he has "solid support from the four CCA people."

Russell said the Alliance councillors will gather informally this weekend to reach an agreement before next Monday's council meeting.

"We're obviously going to have to talk over the weekend," she said