Unexpected Vacany Fires Up Council Race

Councillor Kathleen L. Born's surprise announcement Monday night that she will not be seeking reelection this fall adds a new element of potential for "new faces" to jump into the fray in the upcoming City Council election.

"Up until Kathy announced, it looked like nine incumbents," said Glenn S. Koocher '71, a local political observer and host of "Cambridge Inside Out."

The open space on the council could generate more interest in the election, said Ken Carson, the president of Born's party, the Cambridge Civic Alliance (CCA).

"T'm completely confident that with an open position available there will be substantially more interest in newcomers coming into the race," Carson said.

The status of the CCA, Cambridge's more liberal party, which traditionally has fielded four or five spots on the council, is in flux. With Born retiring, there will be only two CCA incumbents running for reelection in November----Henrietta C. Davis and first-termer Jim Braude.

"Now, if you're looking for an established good-government candidate, Henrietta Davis is the only one left," Koocher said.

Carson points out that Davis and Born share common concerns, such as housing and zoning.

But with Born's withdrawal, somebody new, likely from the CCA and maybe a "North Cambridge neighborhood" candidate, will enter the field, Koocher said.

"The Born people are going to be shopping around for a place to go," Koocher said.

Born lives on Walnut Ave., in a neighborhood near Porter Square.

And, as has happened before, someone from the School Committee will probably step up to fill the incumbent vacuum, Koocher said.

Koocher speculates that School Committee member Susana M. Segat is the most "realistic" candidate.

"She is a very savvy lobbyist, someone who is capable of playing the hardest hardball at the highest levels," Koocher said.

And Segat's work on the School Committee with the controversial changes to Cambridge Rindge and Latin School boosts her status in the community, Carson said.

"She's done very well on the School Committee, and has in particular a strong support among high school parents," Carson said. "Given the level of interest in matters at the high school level over the last couple of years that could serve to get her name recognition."

Koocher fingers another School Committee member, E. Denise Simmons, as another possibility.

"She'd be a credible candidate if she wanted to run because her politics are progressive and she's articulate," Koocher said.

Simmons has been a leader on the school committee and on race issues, Carson said.

"Denise Simmons has been a leader on the School Committee for many years. This is her second year as vice chair," Carson said. "On top of that she has taken a leading position in the city on the issue of bringing race into a position where there could be an open dialogue about it."

In addition to those two School Committee members, Koocher speculates that Katherine Triantafillou, a former three-term councillor who was defeated in the 1999 election, might return to the field.

""There is a sense that Katherine Triantafillou might try to make a come-back," Koocher said.

Triantafillou has the advantage of being from North Cambridge, although her past record might help as well as hinder her chances, Koocher added.

"She did marginalize herself by her intemperate behavior and her willingness to be the outsider on the council," he said.

--Staff writer Lauren R. Dorgan can be reached at dorgan@fas.harvard.edu.