Matthew Horace Graham (b. 1944) was the Mayor of Topstad from May 1999 to July 2007. He was elected as a Liberal at the 1999 election, and became a Liberal Democrat in 2004. In May 2006, Graham was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis; since then, his condition has worsened slightly; Graham now only attends council meetings fortnightly, and walks with a cane. Graham is a strong advocate of stem-cell research. In December 2006, he announced he was retiring from politics at the 2007 mayoral election, though he dismissed any talk of his early retirement. He was succeeded by Gary Trent in July 2007.