One of the running debates people are having in the wake of the 2016 elections is to what degree third-party candidates played a "spoiler" role to Hillary Clinton by siphoning off the votes of people who almost certainly would've preferred Clinton--not Donald Trump--as a second-best alternative to Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Continue reading

The election of Donald Trump has been a huge boon for interest in local politics in Philadelphia, and we're seeing that firsthand. Over 300 people have signed up to run for local ward committee seats on our page, and we sold out all 100 tickets for our workshop on winning local ward elections in just two days. (We've since set up a second workshop to accommodate all the interest.) Philadelphia 3.0 Executive Director Ali Perelman talked with Liz Spikol at the Jewish Exponent about what she thinks is happening:  Continue reading

In which Bill Greenlee proposes some fixes to city towing regulations; Councilmembers deposit some land into the Land Bank and exempt publicly-owned properties from stormwater fees; Allan Domb, Bill Greenlee, and Darrell Clarke propose some basic tracking of tax incentives; and David Oh proposes clarifying the protocol for parking by broken parking meters. Continue reading

(RCO map | Philadelphia City Planning Commission) Most new Special Day proclamations are a waste of time, but one local holiday proclamation that could make a real difference in local politics is RCO Election Day. Continue reading

The 2016 Election results have stirred up a lot of restless political energy in Philadelphia, and we've been encouraging people to put that to positive use by signing up to run for local ward committee seats.  Continue reading

This Monday, Philadelphia 3.0 hosted a policy discussion at Pipeline Philly about what the City's Department of Licenses and Inspections is doing to modernize their operations, and why this matters for the city's real estate economy. Continue reading

(Photo: AL DIA) The first phase of the Philadelphia Housing Authority's blockbuster urban renewal project in Sharswood is complete, reports Julia Terruso, but officials are worried that a Trump administration's changing priorities could make it unviable to finish the project. Continue reading

While we haven't always agreed with Council President Darrell Clarke's politics in the past, we strongly agree with his sentiment that Philadelphia city government should look to use our existing resources better if we're expecting a hostile urban policy environment under the Trump administration and a conservative supermajority in the Pennsylvania legislature. Continue reading

Eliminating the Electoral College system in favor of a national popular vote for Presidential elections is an idea that's gotten some traction over the years, and now that Donald Trump is set to become President despite likely losing the popular vote, it looks to be gaining traction again.  Continue reading

(Philadelphia division map) There's a lot of grief and anger here in Philadelphia in response to the outcome of Tuesday's election, with many of the city's voters (and not just Democrats) feeling like they've been stripped of their power and agency in national politics. That's a perfectly natural response to losing an election, and people should take the time they need to cope. But in the days ahead, we have to channel that frustration into building Philadelphia's political power back. Continue reading