City Referendum to Ask If Kennedy Should Run

A referendum question introduced by City Councilor Alfred E. Velluccion whether Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D.-Mass) should be a presidential candidate will appear on the ballot in next fall's Cambridge municipal elections.

It will be the first time Kennedy's name will appear on a ballot concerning the presidential race, Vellucci said yesterday. Eight members of the nine-member city council voted last month to add the question to the referendum.

"I love Kennedy," Vellucci said. Vellucci added he supports Kennedy because Kennedy backs the poor, wants to give medical attention to all Americans, and wants to control gas prices.

If Kennedy does well in the referendum, it will help push Kennedy toward the presidency, Vellucci said. However, Thomas P. Southwick '71, Kennedy's press secretary, said yesterday, "I don't expect this referendum to change Kennedy's position." Kennedy's stated position is that he expects the president to be renominated and reelected and expects to support him.

City Councilor David Wylie '69, who supports Kennedy, said yesterday he does not think the referendum has much to do with Cambridge.

Moot Point

"The question of whether or not Kennedy's popularity is high in Cambridge is moot," City Councilor Saundra Graham said yesterday. Graham cast the one dissenting vote on the motion to put the question of Kennedy's candidacy on the ballot. "Kennedy should decide for himself if he is going to run, not me or anyone else," she said. "We should not try to draft someone for the presidency."

The other referendum questions concern city investment in South Africa, nuclear power, and the future of Harvard Square.