Cambridge Vice Mayor Burhan Azeem on Massachusetts state senate bid
The MIT alum spoke about safety, sustainability, and affordability
On Dec. 9, 2025, longtime State Senator Patricia Jehlen announced she would not be running for reelection in 2026. Her seat as State Senator of Massachusetts’s Second Middlesex district has been occupied for two decades, and, in a state where incumbency is prevalent, an empty senate seat in such a high-profile area is rare.
Burhan Azeem ’19, Cambridge Vice Mayor and the youngest member in the Cambridge City Council at the time of his election, is running to fill her seat. Despite his relatively recent debut into local politics shortly after graduating from MIT in 2019, Azeem’s impact has already been felt throughout the city; he expanded zoning, reduced parking minimums, and established universal pre-K for Cambridge residents.
On March 8, 2026, The Tech interviewed Azeem to discuss his campaign plans as well as the promises he plans to deliver on if elected. Having accomplished his goals as vice mayor, Azeem is eyeing larger challenges in the state capitol, as he wants to “do more” as state senator.
On the cost of living
One of the most highlighted points of Azeem’s campaign centers around Massachusetts’ affordability crisis. “Massachusetts is the richest state in the richest country in the world, yet most people here don’t feel rich,” Azeem said.
Echoing ideas found on his platform, Azeem named the rising costs of housing, utilities, public transportation, and childcare as significant contributors to Massachusetts’s economic challenges. Azeem likened childcare to a “second mortgage,” and that “finding a way to get universal pre-K and childcare” would help address this issue.
Azeem has addressed similar issues; during his first term as Cambridge City Councilor in 2022, he played a critical role in establishing the universal Cambridge preschool program. When asked about the possibility of extending the pillars of this program beyond Cambridge as state senator, Azeem was optimistic. “I don’t think there’s a reason we can’t do it for the state,” he said. “It’s been a little while since we expanded educational access, but I think that it’s critical.”
Azeem then addressed Massachusetts housing shortages, asking why there seems to be a lack of innovation regarding this issue. “We keep on having digital software innovation. All the biggest companies are software companies. There is no big physical infrastructure company, and I think that fundamentally, our rules were meant to stop construction,” he said.
Citing the rapid expansion of highway construction during the 1950s and 1960s, Azeem referenced the subsequent restriction of housing development as an important reason for the expensive condition of the housing market. “When Eisenhower passed this big highway act, people started putting highways in cities, then cities pushed back and it became a huge fight,” Azeem explained. He said that the resulting legislation prevented housing development without tons of approval, which “slowed everything to a halt.”
“If you want someone to build something, you have to create rules and guidelines that allow them to do so. [But] so much of 1970s [and] 1980s politics was about stopping the bad stuff that we also made it illegal to build the good stuff,” Azeem said. “That’s the politics I’m trying to fix.”
On clean energy
Aside from improving the general affordability of Massachusetts, Azeem’s campaign also focuses on creating a more ecologically sustainable state.
During Azeem’s time at MIT, he studied materials science and engineering (Course 3-A). Initially, he believed material science was at the root of many issues facing the world.
However, as Azeem engaged with politics during the 2016 election, his perspective shifted. “I realized that policy is a much bigger part of it. Battery technology allows for efficient electric cars already. We already have solutions to plastic pollution. But there’s just all these things that are in the way of that.”
Azeem then discussed the untapped potential of clean energy in Massachusetts, emphasizing the need for a change in perspective. “We frame climate action as sacrifice instead of building a clean energy system that is more affordable and reliable than what came before,” Azeem argued.
He opposed the current administration’s move to halt all offshore wind projects in the United States and stated that Massachusetts is one of the best places in the world to build offshore wind. “It is a deep source of energy that we could then use to bring down both emissions and costs per resident,” Azeem said.
However, he suggested that the White House isn’t entirely to blame for the present neglect of this potential energy source. “The reason Trump was able to do that was also kind of our fault.” Azeem said. “It took us 10 years to permit offshore wind.”
On immigration and technology
Following recent anti-ICE demonstrations in the Boston area, Azeem plans to introduce legislation that will “ensure ICE is following the law” in the form of bills similar to the recently proposed “No Secret Police Act” in California, which bans ICE officers from wearing masks and requires them to wear identifiable badges.
In this new wave of technological advancements, Azeem pointed to digital privacy, security, and safety as increasingly important priorities. According to Pew Research Center, 71% of Americans are concerned about how the government handles their data. “I think you have to find a line of being able to actually close cases, solve crimes, but also be very, very careful about what this information can be used for,” Azeem said. He also emphasized that safety should not come at any unnecessary cost to privacy.
Azeem shared an experience where a suspect for a shooting in his neighborhood was only caught with a security camera. He stated that the security camera was the only way that police officers could find the suspect. Thus, he cited warrants as an effective means of ensuring safety, as long as they are reasonable, apply to specified conditions, and are not shared with any other department or administration for unrelated purposes.
Advice for MIT students
As the interview was brought to a close, Azeem acknowledged the impact that MIT, alongside its innovations, has had on his own understanding of the Cambridge-Boston area as well as the greater community.
Azeem emphasized that while politics can be incredibly difficult to get into, it’s something where individuals can “make a huge difference.” He encouraged people who also want to make an impact on their community to “run for something” and focus on local problems first.
“You should make sure that you feel like you can belong, you have something to contribute, and are part of the community,” Azeem advised. “If you are, the sky’s the limit.”