Moderate Voters Flex Their Muscle in Philly's 2023 Elections

Photo: Jared Piper / Philadelphia City Council Philadelphia’s spirited 2023 has finally come to a close, with overall net positive results for the future of our city.  The big winners of the election were Black voters, moderate voters, and the Philadelphia Democratic Party establishment, along with the Philadelphia Building Trades unions under the leadership of Ryan Boyer. Cherelle Parker, the official choice of the trades, and the unofficial preferred pick of Democratic City Committee leadership, won the Mayoral election with 33% of the vote. Continue reading

Philly's Land Bank Just Beat Its FY2023 Housing Goal

(Image: Jon Geeting | Source: Philadelphia Land Bank) Listening to the 2023 Mayoral candidates talk about housing affordability in the various forums this campaign season, there is some cause for hope that Philly is finally coming around to the idea of using the city’s large stockpile of vacant land and property for mixed-income housing. Continue reading

Can We Please Have a Non-Partisan Poll of the Philly Mayor's Race?

(Image: The Philadelphia Citizen) It’s a little over 30 days until Election Day, and Philadelphia voters still haven’t seen a real unbiased poll of the Mayoral primary.   Continue reading

The State of the Philly City Council Money Race

Candidates running for office in 2023 filed their Sixth Tuesday Pre-Primary campaign finance reports this week, showing how much money they raised and spent since the first of the year, how they spent their resources, and who’s funding their campaigns.  Continue reading

Philadelphia 3.0 Announces Endorsements for City Council At-Large Elections

Philadelphia 3.0, a non-profit and political action committee formed in 2014 to support new leadership for Philadelphia City Council, announced a slate of endorsed candidates in the 2023 Democratic At Large primaries on Monday. In the race for City Council At-Large Democrats, the group announced its support for incumbents Katherine Gilmore-Richardson and Isaiah Thomas, along with newcomers Job Itzkowitz, Eryn Santamoor, and Donavan West.  Continue reading

2023 Issues: Fair Citywide Rules vs. Councilmanic Prerogative

(Photo credit: Jon Geeting) Inquirer reporters Jake Blumgart and Sean Walsh talked to outgoing Council President Darrell Clarke about one of the big themes of his tenure in office, which we also focused on in our last newsletter: the steady power shift from the Mayor toward District City Council members on land use and built-environment questions. "Clarke announced Feb. 23 that he is not seeking reelection, ending a 40-year career in City Hall, which includes almost a quarter-century on City Council, 12 of those years as the Council’s leader. The defining principle of Clarke’s tenure — empowering hyperlocal decision-making, often at the expense of citywide policy — could last long after he is gone. It can be seen in the ever greater latitude of district Council members to set rules specific to their territory — to the chagrin of those who argue that it creates a patchwork of rules that makes it harder to do everything from making streets safer to opening a new coffee shop. It also tends to privilege the loudest voices, which are usually those most opposed to change."   Continue reading

Council President Clarke's Departure Dramatically Raises the Stakes for 2023 City Council Elections

(Photo Credit: Thom Carroll | Philly Voice) Further cementing the 2023 election’s status as a pivotal election year for the city of Philadelphia, Council President and 5th District Councilmember Darrell Clarke announced last Thursday he would not run for another term.   Continue reading

2023 Issues: Two Million Philadelphians!

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been reporting on some of the horse-race news about Philadelphia’s 2023 elections, like who’s running for At-Large and District primaries, how much money everybody’s been raising, and what could happen in the general election.  Continue reading

How Did Philly's 2023 City Council Candidates Perform in the Money Race?

(Photo: Michael Bryant / Philadelphia Inquirer) Christmas Day for 2023 election observers came earlier this week with the release of candidates’ Cycle 7 campaign finance reports—the first real concrete gauge of the candidates’ electoral viability. Continue reading

Previewing the 2023 Philly General Election

In two recent newsletters we previewed the emerging field for City Council District primaries and the At-Large primary, based on what we know from the confirmed candidate committee filings and what various political observers are saying. This week we’ll take a look at some of the emerging general election dynamics that are visible at this point in time. Continue reading