Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui is serving a third term on the Cambridge City Council, and second as Mayor of Cambridge. Mayor Siddiqui immigrated to the United States from Karachi, Pakistan at the age of two, along with her parents and twin brother. She was raised in Cambridge affordable housing and attended Cambridge Public Schools, graduating from Cambridge Rindge and Latin. While a student at Rindge, Mayor Siddiqui’s passion for service and youth representation motivated her to co-found the Cambridge Youth Council, now in its 21st year. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Public Policy from Brown University, Mayor Siddiqui served as an AmeriCorps fellow at New Profit, a then Cambridge-based organization dedicated to improving social mobility for families. Upon earning her J.D. from Northwestern’s Pritzker School of Law, she moved home to practice as a legal aid attorney with Northeast Legal Aid.
As Mayor, her priorities include increasing affordable housing, supporting local businesses, improving Cambridge Public Schools, and making Cambridge a more equitable city. During her time in office, Mayor Siddiqui has:
Started Cambridge RISE , one of the first guaranteed income pilots in the country, and expand the pilot into a $22 million program reaching all families in poverty in the city, Rise Up
Helped lead the effort to pass the Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance amendments, putting Cambridge on a path to decrease 50% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2035
Founded a Winter Support Drive for residents in need
Launched the Mayor’s Disaster Relief Fund, which has raised over $5 million dollars to help individuals, small businesses, and nonprofit organizations
Initiated an Early College Pilot with Cambridge Public Schools and Lesley University
Formed an Ad-Hoc Committee in collaboration with the Office of Early Childhood Education to implement Universal Pre-K in Cambridge, which will start with a pilot in September 2023 and expand the following year
Created three working groups to address persistent issues in Cambridge, including the Climate Crisis Working Group, Fare Free Bus Route Working Group, and the Homelessness Working Group, which all provided policy recommendations to the City Council
Mayor Siddiqui, who serves as chair of the School Committee, has implemented a Children’s Savings Account program along with the City Manager’s Office and Cambridge Public Schools, helping families build dedicated savings for post-secondary education. Mayor Siddiqui has sponsored numerous community events, including Cambridge Digs DEEP , a series of Citywide forums and workshops on racial justice, and hosts an annual Cambridge Community Iftar during the month of Ramadan. She helped preserve the City’s existing affordable housing at the Rindge Towers and collaborated with residents and advocates to clean up and revitalize the area around Jerry’s Pond, an environmental justice site in North Cambridge. In addition, she has led efforts to bring halal food to the Cambridge Public Schools and eliminated library fines that disproportionately affect low-income residents and families of color.
Mayor Siddiqui earned a 2020 NAACP award, the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts Emerging Women Leaders in the Law 2021 award. She was also the South Asian Bar Association 2021 Member of the Year, a Margaret Fuller House 2021 Gala award recipient, and a recipient of the 2021 Greater Boston Labor Council Labor Champion award. Mayor Siddiqui looks forward to continuing to make Cambridge a more equitable and civically engaged community.
Contact
Sumbul Siddiqui ssiddiqui@cambridgema.gov
617 448-1525 (cell)
Photos
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Photo Credit: Kyle Klein Photography