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{shortcode-21cc3534b02e5a90dd1b6e61be0fe28423896a7e}s Cambridge residents make their way to the polls to vote in the most crowded race in recent history, they’ll see many new names on their ballots. But while candidates file in and out of Cambridge’s political lineage, the organizations that endorse candidates remain the same — and remain powerful.

Super PACs, unions, and other interest groups consistently throw their support behind candidates for Cambridge’s School Committee and City Council. And their vote of confidence is important: Every current city councilor received an endorsement from at least one of three super PACs in the city.

But the endorsements are significant for more than just the next two years. For some organizations, election cycle endorsements carry major implications that extend into the future of Cambridge’s political scene.

School Committee Endorsements

Eighteen candidates are vying for the six seats on the School Committee, a position that can be a stepping stone to broader political offices in the city. A significant fraction of the current City Council has served on the School Committee — and one of Cambridge’s super PACs may be taking notice of the pattern.

Four of the nine members on the current City Council have served on the School Committee prior to their run for the Council: Mayor E. Denise Simmons, Vice Mayor Marc C. McGovern, Ayesha M. Wilson, and Patricia M. “Patty” Nolan ’80.

Two of these four candidates were endorsed by the Cambridge Citizens Coalition in the last municipal election cycle, a political organization formed due to growing concern about the city’s rapid development. According to Arjun K. Jaikumar, CCC president Suzanne P. Blier noted in a private conversation that the organization chose to endorse School Committee candidates noting the clear pathway Committee Members have to the Council.

He said that during their conversation, she noted that the “CCC is cognizant that many candidates who are elected to the School Committee ultimately run for City Council.”

“I think that probably this is going to be something that is of interest to other organizations that endorse for city council races in the future,” he said. “It is true that many school committee candidates ultimately run for City Council.”

Blier wrote that this correlation did not factor into the decision-making of the CCC’s endorsement slate, though they are cognizant of the connection.

“It’s possible that it was noted, in conversation, that many City Councillors once served on the School Committee — simply as an observation of Cambridge political history — but that has never been a factor in CCC’s endorsement decisions,” Blier wrote in a statement.

The CCC is not the only organization throwing their support behind School Committee candidates. The Cambridge Educators Association — the union which represents the faculty and staff of Cambridge Public Schools — made a splash when it did not endorse any incumbents this election cycle.

Instead, the CEA endorsed six challengers — Luisa De Paula Santos, Caitlin E. Dube ’05, Jessica D. Goetz, Lilly Havstad, Jane S. Hirschi, and Jaikumar.

At least one challenger is guaranteed a seat on the School Committee with all but one incumbent running. Notable endorsements may play a key role in which challenger is elected and if there are more.

Super PACs

Cambridge’s PACs have significant influence among candidates, healthily funding campaigns in exchange for pledges to vote certain ways on the City’s top issues. The PACs have shaped the discussions around the two key issues in the city’s election: housing affordability and bike safety.

This election cycle, the super PACS — A Better Cambridge, Cambridge Bicycle Safety, and the CCC — each released candidate endorsements for the Council. ABC and the CCC also hosted forums across Cambridge.

Cambridge Bicycle Safety was founded as an advocacy group to promote safety for cyclists — an issue which has drawn great attention after the deaths of various cyclists across the city. They released their endorsements in two tiers: Bike Supporters and Bike Champions. All endorsees pledged to complete the bike network on time while the champions had the “strongest responses to other transportation-related topics” according to their website.

The Bike Supporters include Nolan, Catherine “Cathie” Zusy, Peter Hsu, LaQueen A. Battle, and Stanislav Rivkin. The Bike Champions include Burhan Azeem, McGovern, Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler, Sumbul Siddiqui, Ayah Al-Zubi ’23, Dana R. Bullister, and Ned S. Melanson.

But bike safety is not the only issue shaping this election cycle. Affordable housing — the lifeblood of Cambridge elections — was also a pressing issue in the 2025 cycle.

The Affordable Housing Overlay — a controversial policy which allows developers to build higher and more densely than current zoning restrictions allow — gave rise to Cambridge’s remaining two superPACs. ABC supports an increase in the city’s development, while the CCC formed because of concerns about the city’s rapid expansion.

A Better Cambridge endorsed six incumbents — Simmons, McGovern, Sobrinho-Wheeler, Azeem, Wilson, and Siddiqui — and challengers Melanson and Bullister.

The independent, nonprofit wing of the CCC endorsed two incumbents — Ayesha M. Wilson and Cathie Zusy — and five challengers — Hsu, Elizabeth K. Bisio, John Hanratty, Zion Sherin, and write-in candidate Louise Venden. The CCC superPAC provides financial and other support to the candidates the nonprofit endorses.

Other Key Players

But local organizations are not the only ones throwing their support behind candidates. External groups — including national politicians and Harvard student groups — are also keying in to Cambridge’s political scene.

Harvard students are getting more involved in local elections in response to discouragement about national politics. Individual students are joining campaign teams, while student organizations are endorsing candidates and hosting forums.

The Harvard College Democrats endorsed two challengers for Cambridge City Council — Rivkin and Al-Zubi — and one challenger for School Committee, Dube.

Both the Harvard Undergraduate Urban Sustainability Lab and the Harvard College Democrats hosted City Council candidate forums which discussed a multitude of issues, among them a third key issue in this election cycle — the Trump administration.

Several challengers are running on a platform of pushing back against the Trump administration. Incumbents, meanwhile, have spearheaded the city’s response— such as strengthening the city’s sanctuary city ordinance to limit CPD from assisting ICE in detentions and deportations. Candidates have recognized the impact the administration is also having on the University with the attacks on higher education and research funding.

Some candidates have called for Harvard to pay more to the city — through increasing their Payments in Lieu of Taxes — as Cambridge prepares for financial strains due to the Trump administration, while others have cited Harvard’s financial hardships as a counterargument.

Beyond Harvard’s gates, U.S. Representative Ayanna S. Pressley (D-Mass.) released her slate of endorsements one week before the election. Pressley, who represents the area of Cambridge that includes Harvard, only endorsed incumbents — Simmons, Azeem, McGovern, Wilson, Siddiqui, and Sobrinho-Wheeler.

Several issues are at the top of voter’s minds this upcoming election, and Cambridge residents are able to elect candidates representative of their views currently — through mail-in voting, dropping off ballots in the open satellite dropboxes, or in-person early voting at the Cambridge Water Department, Main Library, or Valente Library — or in person on Election Day, Nov. 4 at their precinct’s assigned voting location.

—Staff writer Shawn A. Boehmer contributed reporting.

—Staff writer Dionise Guerra-Carrillo can be reached at dionise.guerracarrillo@thecrimson.com.