POLS ON THE STREET: Petition Season Brings Politicians To The People

by Joe Shaheeli

COALITION of Philly political and labor leaders, coordinated by Councilman David Oh, speaking, met at Hyundai Rotem plant in S. Phila. where SEPTA Silverliner rail cars are built. SEPTA is considering outsourcing rail production overseas. Included in bipartisan coalition are Phila, Chamber of Commerce, Transit Workers Union, former Gov. Ed Rendell, Congressman Chaka Fattah, and Council Members Curtis Jones, Jr. and Al Taubenberger.

Pennsylvania’s political footsoldiers threw themselves into the tough entry-level task facing those who would run for state or national office in the Apr. 26 primary election: circulating nominating petitions to get their candidates on the ballot.

This is tedious and often chilly work as well – doubly so this season, as much of the state is recovering from a blockbuster blizzard. But it must be done. Otherwise – we wind up in a democracy with no actual choices in 2016. Who wants this? Raise your hands.

Congressional candidates need 1,000 confirmed signatures to get on the ballot. Aspirants to the State Senate need 500; to the State House of Representatives, 300.

Voters in the presidential primary may vote for their presidential favorite. But they must also vote for delegates to the national convention, who are allocated by Congressional District. (This becomes important, as will be explained below.) Presidential and US senatorial candidates need 2,000 valid signatures.

The burden for all petitioners is to prove that their signatures are valid. These follow rules that are technical at best. Sometimes their interpretation is murky. The final shots will be called by the Pennsylvania judiciary; Philadelphia’s 1st Judicial Dist. Common Pleas judges, who are the first line of decision-making, are usually upheld on appeal in petition-challenge cases.

Any candidate who is viewed as a threat by another candidate should expect to have their petitions scanned with hostile intent, to uncover flaws that invalidate single signatures or whole petition sheets. There are numerous that can invalidate a signature or a petition. Any person running for office should retain an expert to help them navigate this minefield.

The first thing a petition-circulator should grasp is that the signatory on a petition must live in the same district their candidate is running in.

This poses all sorts of practical problems for circulators. They need to know the boundaries of their candidates’ districts well, query the voters they solicit precisely, and steer their signers onto the proper sheets. Otherwise, their signatures may be stricken – and with them their candidates.

The rule of thumb is: Get twice as many sigs as you need. Outsiders who are challenging entrenched interests can save themselves some legal hassle if they submit three times the needed signatures on their petitions. Their foes won’t bother to knock them off the ballot, saving their money for later phases of the campaign.

Petitions are now being circulated for State and national primary contests now in Philadelphia.

A done deal, however, is for the Mar. 15 special elections to fill the seats of State Reps. Louise Bishop (D-W. Phila.) and Cherelle Parker (D-N. Phila.), who resigned from the 192nd and 200th Legislative seats respectively. The deadline for petitions in those races was this Monday. The 192nd required 377 valid sigs, the 200th 495. We’ll soon learn if there were problems with these petitions.

Please note that although these March and April elections will be administered by Philadelphia City Commission, like all elections, the process of petitioning is entirely handled by the Pennsylvania Dept. of State because all these offices are State offices. Blank petition forms should be downloaded from this DoS webpage: https://www.pavoterservices.state.pa.us/Pages/officesurvey.aspx. They must be filled out and physically returned to Harrisburg no later than Feb. 16.

Lawsuit Seeks To Allow Out-Of-State Petitioners

HONORING State Sen. John Sabatina, Jr., were six Italian American fraternal bodies. Enjoying evening at Townsend Room were Pete Venneri, Ward Leader John Sabatina, Sr., Senator & Lisa Sabatina. Photo by Wendell Douglas

A lawsuit filed in federal court is seeking to force the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to permit petition-circulators from out of state.

Benezet Consulting LLC argued in a hearing Jan. 26 that the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s requirement petition-circulators be residents of the state was already ruled unconstitutional by “Green Party v. Aicheles” last year. The Commonwealth’s position is the Aichele decision only applies to third-party circulators, not to major parties.

The plaintiff’s lawyer, Paul Rossi of Kennett Square, said, “It is unfortunate that American citizens have to contiuously fight to exercise their 1st Amendment rights in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. We are confident the facts are on our side and we will prevail.”

A favorable ruling would permit national candidate with strong volunteer bases in neighboring states to muster new ground troops in petition drives.

Wolf Strikes Blow To GOP Prison Bloc

In Gov. Tom Wolf’s ongoing duel with the Republican-controlled State House of Representatives, the Governor may have discovered a lever to pry the Republicans away from their notion the 2015-16 budget is “done”.

It’s prison funding. The Pennsylvania Dept. of Corrections received $1 billion in retroactive funds dating to July as part of Gov. Tom Wolf’s appropriations in his late December line-item veto, but those funds will be exhausted within two weeks, a worried State Sen. John Gordner (R- Columbia) noted.

TONYELLE COOK-ARTIS, 50th Ward powerhouse who is running for 200th Legislative Dist., packed first funder at Alma Mater in Mt. Airy with strong support. From left: Councilman Allan Domb, David Hyman, Ward Leader Pete Lyde, State Reps. Dwight Evans and Stephen Kinsey, Numa St. Louis, former Councilwoman Marian Tasco, Ken Weinstein, Cook-Artis, Councilman Derek Green, Ward Leader Isabella Fitzgerald, UFCW Local 1776 reps John Meyerson and Adam Gold, William Ewing, Esq., Dan Muroff, Councilwoman Cherelle Parker, Ward Leader Rondal Cousar and Mustafa Rashed.

Wolf released more than $23 billion, exercising his line-item veto power. But many Commonwealth agencies received far less than they need to maintain normal operations through the first half of 2016.

Among them is Corrections – a department that spends urban and suburban taxpayers’ funds heavily in rural districts like Gordner’s, which are for the most part controlled by Republicans.

Senate Republicans are pushing action to refund Corrections. But if Capitol Hill remains in a three-way snarl between Senate, House & the Governor’s Mansion, their moves may not work.

Wolf is hoping some rural Tea Partiers in the House will get the message and rethink their opposition to government spending.

Sabatina, Boyle Flex Their Muscles

State Rep. Kevin Boyle (D-Northeast) received a boost to his effort to win the Democratic nomination for the State Senate’s 5th Dist. seat. The Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police announced it is endorsing Boyle’s campaign.

“We’ve been solidly behind Rep. Boyle for some time and that support will proudly carry over to the race this April,” FOP Lodge 5 President John McNesby said. “Our membership felt it’s time for a change and with our Board of Directors voting over 2 to 1 in support of Rep. Boyle, we are sending a message that our organization and its resources are fully behind his bid to be the next State Senator in the 5th Dist.”

“I am honored to have the support of the Philadelphia F.O.P Lodge 5 and its President John McNesby,” Boyle responded. “Philadelphia is blessed to have a highly professional and dedicated police force. It is incumbent upon us in elective office to insure our city maintains this level of police service.”

The Philly FOP Board of Directors met and voted on their endorsement. Boyle prevailed over incumbent State Sen. John Sabatina (D-Northeast) by a 72-34 margin. The group asserts that a majority of their 14,000 members live in Northeast Philadelphia.

The 5th Dist. consists of Northeast Philadelphia and a small piece of southeastern Montgomery County.

Unfazed, Sabatina announced his campaign for reelection in the 5th. Despite snow-covered roads and school closings, nearly 100 people joined with Sabatina as he made clear he was running for another term to the seat he won in a recent special election to replace Lt. Gov. Mike Stack.

Teamsters Local 107, which has endorsed Sabatina, hosted the event. VP and Business Mgr. Ed Slater introduced the Senator, saying, “I want to say right now, the Teamsters stand behind John Sabatina. He has been a good friend to us and to all the men and women in organized labor.”

Sabatina thanked Slater, noting his 100% voting record with the AFL-CIO, and laid out his plans for his next four years, saying he was running “because he loved his city, Philadelphia” and that “as a lifelong resident of my district, I’m qualified to lead, because the people whom I represent have been my neighbors for my whole life.”

The Senator said his sophomore term would have four areas of focus: education, economic growth, the livability of the Northeast, and public safety. He mentioned that it was “shameful” how much was spent on prisons in his district and how little was spent on schools. “We need to invest in education now, not incarceration later,” said Sabatina.

He vowed to fight to build industry along the Delaware River and invest in the Northeast’s industrial sites – while also reducing the commuting time to downtown.

Finally, Sabatina emphasized his background as a key qualification: “As a former Assistant District Attorney, I have been fighting to keep our neighborhoods safe for years. I promise to use what I learned as a prosecutor to make Northeast Philadelphia a great place to raise a family.”

Afterwards, Sabatina announced his campaign team.

Media and Mail will be handled by the Berlin Rosen firm. Key operatives are Alex Navarro-McKay and Will Hailer. Will is a Vice-President at BerlinRosen. Marc Silverman of 38th Street Strategies will do polling. Research is up to Gordie Loewen, who has solid Democratic credentials. Kristen Stoner of the St. Bernard Group will run fundraising.

Artis-Cook Gets Labor, Party Backing

2016 members of The United Food & Commercial Workers Union endorsed Tonyelle Cook-Artis, the Democratic candidate for State Representative in the 200th Legislative Dist. in the Mar. 15 special election. Members of the local union were on hand to show their support to Cook-Artis during a fundraiser held in her honor on Thursday evening at Alma Mater in the Mt. Airy section of Philadelphia.

“I am honored to receive the endorsement of UFCW, Local 1776 and very appreciative of their support to my campaign. Local 1776 and its members share my commitment in helping families and creating positive change in the lives of working people,” says Cook-Artis. “I look forward to building a strong partnership with Local 1776 to develop policy and initiatives to create opportunities for economic development and job growth in my district.”

“The members of Local 1776 are proud and excited to support Tonyelle Cook-Artis,” stated Wendell Young, IV, president of UFCW Local 1776. “Tonyelle is the perfect candidate to continue the great work already accomplished in the 200th district, and will stand with the men and women of our union on issues that are important to working families.”

Tonyelle Cook-Artis is the Democratic endorsed candidate for the March 15th special election in the 200th legislative district. She is a public servant and the former Chief of Staff to former State Rep. Cherelle Parker. Tonyelle has extensive experience in government and community organization. She is currently the 50thWard election-day coordinator and has worked on numerous local and statewide political campaigns.

A crowd of 150 supporters showed up at Alma Mater in Mt. Airy for Cook-Artis’ initial fundraiser. Members of the host committee included Congressman Robert Brady (D-Phila.), Honorable James Kenney, Honorable Dwight Evans, Honorable Cherelle L. Parker, Ward Leader Marian Tasco, Councilman Derek Green, State Rep. Stephen Kinsey, William H. Ewing, Charles Finney, Mungu Sanchez, Mustafa Rashed, Laborers’ leadersSam Staten, Jr. and Ryan N. Boyer, Ward Leader Rondal Cousar, AFL-CIO leader Pat Eiding, Marc Stier and Ken Weinstein.

Cook-Artis was overwhelmed with the turnout. Flanked by her family, friends and former colleagues. she expressed her excitement to launch her campaign and promised to claim victory in March. Other notable guests in attendance included City Councilman Allan Domb, developer, and attorney David Hyman.

“A leader is a leader, but I remember the days when I would call Rep. Parker’s office and I would ask to speak with Tonyelle because she knows how to get things done, said Kinsey.

Piccarreto Out, Ray Bailey In

HEAVY drifts don’t faze State Rep. Brian Sims as he launches his petition drive for renomination to his Democratic 182nd State House seat.

As petition drives for the primary ballot get underway, challengers are scrambling to assess their chances.

Out of the 182nd Legislative Dist. race in Center City is Marisa Piccarreto, a doula who lives in Logan Square, said, “After deep consideration, I am withdrawing my name from consideration in this election for State Representative for the 2016 cycle.

“I will continue to work to build awareness around issues that are the cornerstones of my candidacy – coverage of doula support in Pennsylvania through Medicaid and private insurance; criminal-justice reform policies at the State and local levels; and equality issues to make sure that everyone’s voices are heard in Harrisburg. I encourage the other candidates in the race to adopt these critical issues as part of their platform moving forward.

“Though you may not see my name on the ballot in April, you will continue to see me at community events advocating zealously for the voiceless, crying out for justice and making sure that equality is always progressing forward.”

Still in this race, along with incumbent State Rep. Brian Sims (D-S. Phila.), are businessman Lou Lanni, senatorial aide and labor activist Ben Waxman, and attorney Marni Snyder.

In West Philadelphia’s 190th Dist., Wynnefield labor activist Ray Bailey is the latest to jump into this intense primary fray. Bailey, a lifelong member of the International Longshoremen’s Association, will bring organizational chops and deep neighborhood connections to his challenge of incumbent State Rep. Vanessa Lowery Brown (D-W. Phila.).

Also in this race are social worker Movita Johnson-Harrell, community activist Wanda Logan and 60th Ward Leader Greg Spearman.

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