In two recent columns, I explore new areas for council district primaries and general party primaries, based on what I have learned from verified candidate committee filings and on the input of various political commentators. previewed. This week, we’ll take a look at some of the general election dynamics that have been revealed so far.
With Democratic voter registration overwhelmingly high in Philadelphia, Democratic primaries are truly important elections for mayor and city council, but there are still some areas where the general election could be competitive.
These include general elections for the city council, city committee elections, and the 10th congressional district.
general city council
In a seven-seat general election for the city council, each political party can nominate up to five candidates, effectively reserving two seats for the candidate not affiliated with the majority political party. Historically, those seats have been transferred to her second-largest party in the city, the Republican Party, but in 2019, Kendra Brooks of the Working Family Party announced her two Republican nominees. I made history by defeating one of my girlfriends, Al Taubenberger.
Republican Rep. David Orr held out easily, defeating Nick O’Rourke, another candidate for the WFP ticket. But this time around, Wu is expected to quickly step down and run as the Republican mayoral candidate, leaving one of his non-majority seats vacant.
David Orr has proven to be the Republican Party’s best general election voter over the years, winning on a map of supporters that is very different from that of most other politicians. have not stopped some from trying to oust him in the party primary. But without City Councilman Ohr and city commissioner Alschmidt, Republicans would lose a proven election winner in his 2023 citywide ticket.
So far, three primary candidates have been declared for the Republican side: Drew Murray, Jim Hasher, and Sam Oropeza. Murray is his manager of regional sales for O’Brien Business Systems, while Logan is president of the Square Neighborhood Association and civic group Philadelphia. It is suitable.
Hasher is a bar owner and real estate agent. Oropeza is a former MMA fighter, coach, and real estate developer. Murray and Hasher ran as candidates for this November Republican special election, which was won by Democrats Jimmy Harrity and Sharon Vaughan.
Republican leaders prefer to nominate only two candidates in the primary for maximum effect in the general election, with only Murray and Hasher running with party support. However, if no one else enters, all three will go on to win the primary.
Meanwhile, the left-wing Working Family Party again appoints Kendra Brooks and the Reverend Nicholas O’Rourke as bannermen. WFP does not function like Democratic and Republican organizations where there are primaries for nominations that members vote in a ballot booth, so you have more control over who appears on the voting line. The Green Party and the Liberal Party are active.
In 2019, Brooks was able to beat Republican Al Taubenberger, but O’Rourke failed to get more votes than David Orr. He was 7,162 votes behind Ohr and O’Rourke, and he was 13,696 votes behind Brooks and O’Rourke. For WFP to win, a certain number of Democratic general election voters would have to drop her two Democratic General Party candidates from the ballot and vote for Brooks and O’Rourke instead.
Last time, the WFP managed to win enough Democrats to keep former City Councilman Alan Domb out of the top five Kendra Brooks could crack. But if Mr. Dongbu doesn’t move around more, of the Democrats who could win the General Party primary, Democrats and independents are most likely to be left most behind by even more left-leaning Democrats and independents. It’s not so clear who the two Democrats are.
city committee
In the City Council election, SEIU Healthcare PA Legislative Director Jarrett Smith will run on the Working Family Party’s ballot line to try to oust Republican Commissioner Seth Bleustein. Both Democratic Commissioners Lisa Deely and Omar Sabir are expected to run for re-election, but no prominent names of potential Democratic nominees have surfaced at this time.
Municipal council general elections will likewise feature guaranteed non-majority party seats, and WFP hopes to rebroadcast its successful 2019 Municipal Council speech.
Seth Bleustein, the current Republican incumbent, is Al Schmidt’s deputy and is widely considered highly qualified for the job. When he had to make interim appointments to replace him, Brucestein at the time had many prominent Democratic validators as the obvious choice to replace Schmidt.
Schmidt is currently Secretary of State for Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and was recently awarded the Citizen’s Medal by Democratic President Joe Biden for his performance in 2020 under intense pressure from Republicans nationwide. Brucestein was Schmidt’s deputy during that 2020 election cycle and has had many good intentions since then.
10th district
In the Northeast’s 10th Council District, very long-tenured council member Brian O’Neill is a Republican, president of the civic group NE Fira Connected, former property manager and Chinese restaurant owner. Also, facing a rare primary from Republican Roman Zhukov.
It is unclear what support Zhukov would get in the primary against Alderman O’Neill, first elected in 1979 and now the city’s local agency. share a building. A little bit of politics there.
Of course, if Zhukov wins, he could be a slightly weaker general election opponent than O’Neill.
Gary Masino, the business manager of the sheet metal union Local 19, will face O’Neill in the general election. Anecdotally, Masino’s entry into this constituency has already involved some heavyweights in the organized workforce, but their joint efforts have helped O’Neill his 44-year run of the district. Who knows if control can be broken.
Jon Meeting Philadelphia 3.0, the Political Action Committee that supports the reform and modernization efforts of City Hall. This is part of a series of articles running on both The Citizen and 3.0. blog.
2023 Election Details from Citizens
Photo by Fernando Garcia Redondo via Flickr
