Currently, Decker’s major issue is fighting for more protective measures for the nuclear reactor at MIT, although the city manager has said that the reactor is only for research and that city security should not be discussed in public council meetings. Last week, Decker pushed for an executive session at tonight’s council meeting to discuss the reactor’s safety.

Anthony D. Galluccio

Mayor Anthony D. Galluccio has received the most number one votes in the last two elections, and remains one of the most popular members of the council.

The youngest mayor in recent Cambridge memory, Galluccio has worked to cooperate with Harvard, even holding his first State of the City Address at the Kennedy School of Government’s ARCO Forum in February. He has tempered his votes on the council to reflect a more open attitude towards Harvard, such as casting the lone vote opposing the Riverside development moratorium last fall. Still, he occasionally rebukes Harvard regarding public relations gaffes.

As mayor, Galluccio keeps order at weekly council and School Committee meetings, aiming to keep councillors and visitors on the agenda.

David P. Maher

Although he’s from a well-known Cambridge family, Vice Mayor David P. Maher is probably “the most underrated of the councillors,” according to Koocher.

One of the few councillors who holds down an outside job—Maher works with the nonprofit Cambridge Family and Children’s Service—he also has had one of the toughest tasks on the council during the past term.

Other councillors credit Maher—in his role as co-chair of the Ordinance Committee— with hammering out details of Cambridge’s first comprehensive rezoning of the past 50 years.

“People who deal with David come away impressed with his knowledge,” Koocher says.

Kenneth E. Reeves ’72

Kenneth E. Reeves ’72—known for his long-winded speeches and his frequent anti-Harvard tirades—will be seeking to win his sixth term on the Cambridge City Council on Nov. 6.

The only Harvard graduate on the council, Reeves often blasts his alma mater for its policies, recently sponsoring an order with language that linked Harvard to Osama bin Laden. The order was modified by other council members to remove inflammatory language.

Reeves squeaked in to an eighth-place spot in the 19a9 election—so even though he is one of seven incumbents in the pool of 19 candidates seeking nine seats, he is the first to say that his seat is not completely safe.

Many have speculated that in this election, his voter base will transfer to the other front-running black candidates, E. Denise Simmons and Ethridge King.