GUESTS GALORE joined festivities at Stinger Lounge, hosted by State Sen. Shirley Kitchen and Sid Booker. From left are Lou Agre, State Rep. Rosita Youngblood, Ward Leader Shirley Gregory, Congressman Bob Brady staffer Ducky Birts, Kitchen and State Rep. Mark Cohen. Photo: Joe Stivala

State Sen. Shirley M. Kitchen (D-N. Phila.), who easily won her fifth term to the 3rd Dist. State Senate seat she has held since winning her first term in November of 1996, has made it obvious to all Democrats everywhere  she “has a mind of her own.” To prove that, she hosted a party last Friday night at Stingers Lounge, Broad & Belfield, to celebrate her primary victory along with the primary winners in three legislative races.

All three had one thing in common, they faced  strong opposition, with one exception: The Senator was supporting them with all her resources.

STATE SENATOR Shirley Kitchen, and Stinger Lounge owner Sid Booker, congratulate J.P. Miranda for winning Democrat nomination in the 197th District. Photo: Joe Stivala

She threw her strength behind community organizer J. P. Miranda for the 197th Legislative Dist. and incumbents State Reps. Michelle Brownlee, representing the 195th Dist., and Rosita Youngblood of the 198th.

Kitchen, celebrating her own primary victory,  said she looks forward “to continuing to serve the needs of the 3rd Dist. and the overall community, along with my colleagues and friends in the State House of Representatives. By casting their votes on Election Day, the people have chosen the best representation for North and Northwest Philadelphia.”

The veteran Senator holds a legacy of constituent services and delivering benefits to the people, including the State’s minimum wage. She lobbied for affordable healthcare, equal pay for women, and those with drug dependencies and in need of rehabilitation. She is the author of PA Act 134, which allows individuals with summary offenses to request their local court expunge an offense from their criminal record five years after they completed their sentence.

DUNBAR BEGINS TAYLOR CHALLENGE

William F. Dunbar, the Democratic nominee for State Representative in Philadelphia’s 177th Dist., will gather Monday with Democratic leaders including Congressman Robert Bob Brady and Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz (both D-Phila.), District Attorney Seth Williams and State Sen. Mike Stack (D-Northeast) at the Hinge Café in Port Richmond to kick off his uphill campaign against 14-term incumbent State Rep. John Taylor (R-Kensington).

For more information about Dunbar, visit www.williamfdunbar.com.

THREE SWORN IN TO HOUSE SEATS

State Rep. Harold James (D-S. Phila.)  was sworn in to his 186th Legislative seat Tuesday in Harrisburg to fill out the unexpired term left by Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, continuing a service that began in 1988 and ended in 2008. Also filling unexpired terms were Ed Neilson in the 169th, the seat left vacant by Councilman Dennis O’Brien, and Gary Williams, who will fill the unexpired term in the 197th left vacant by Sheriff Jewel Williams.

Ed Neilson is the only one of the three who will be campaigning in the General Election to hold onto the seat.

Madeleine Dean was sworn in for the 153rd Legislative Dist. from Montgomery Co., replacing State Rep. Josh Shapiro.

PENNA. LEANING TOWARD OBAMA

ELAINE TOMLIN, Democrat Leader of Ward 42, tells fellow Ward Leaders Shirley Gregory and Sharon Losier, Esq., of her Obama Reception to be held in Portuguese Hall, Roosevelt Boulevard, in September. Photo: Joseph Stivala

Riding the voters’ perception he is as good as or better than President Barack Obama at fixing the economy, Republican challenger Mitt Romney catches up with the President in Florida and Ohio, two critical swing states; yet the President opens an 8-point lead in Pennsylvania, according to a Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll.

This compares to the results of a March  Swing State Poll by the independent Quinnipiac University showing President Obama ahead of Gov. Romney 49–42% in Florida, 47–41% in Ohio and 45–42% in Pennsylvania.

Voters in all three states approve of the president’s handling of Afghanistan, but by margins averaging 2-1, voters say the US should not be involved there.

SANTORUM ANNOUNCES HE’LL SUPPORT ROMNEY

Sen. Rick Santorum  is on board the Mitt Romney presidential bandwagon. Santorum said, “Above all else, we both agree that President Obama must be defeated. The task will not be easy. It will require all hands on deck if our nominee is to be victorious. Gov. Romney will be that nominee and he has my endorsement and support to win this the most critical election of our lifetime.”

Santorum notified his supporters by email, thanking them for their support of his campaign.

IMAGINE IF CITY HAD ITS 2ND CASINO!

April slots revenue at Pennsylvania’s 11 casinos rose 1.3% to $214.1 million from a year ago, boosted by returns from newly opened Valley Forge Casino Resort.

SugarHouse, in Fishtown, had the highest growth percentage, up 7.5% last month from last year, while Harrah’s Chester — which is being renamed Harrah’s Philadelphia — posted the largest decrease at 7.6%, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

The State Legislature is moving to place the second casino, Foxwoods, which had been assigned to Philly, up for bids … which means any winning bidder can move it anywhere in the State. If the State Senate agrees, our city’s need for additional taxes will remain unabated, thanks to those well-intentioned citizens who put the screws to Foxwood.

Six years of increasing casino revenue that made Pennsylvania the nation’s No. 2 gambling market have done little to increase property-tax breaks for most Pennsylvania homeowners, according to state data. An average property owner receives about a $200 discount on annual property tax bills prepared by the state’s 500 school districts. That average has been roughly the same since the 2008-09 fiscal year — fluctuating year to year by $2 to $3 among Western Pennsylvania school districts.

Gross revenue from slot machines statewide in 2008-09 was $1.75 billion. The figure reached $2.35 billion in 2010-11, a 34% increase.

NO SPECIAL ELECTION IN DeWEESE’S DIST.

Officials will not conduct a special election for the 50th House Dist. seat that State Rep. Bill DeWeese of Waynesburg held until he resigned because of his felony corruption conviction said House Speaker Sam Smith.

DeWeese was nominated by Greene, Fayette and Washington Co. voters as the Democratic Party’s candidate last month after his conviction in February for using public resources for campaigns.

He is still running even though he soon reports to prison, but he can’t serve. He is hoping for an appeal to clear him by January when the new House is sworn in. His attorney has asked a Dauphin County judge for bail while he is appealing the case.

WILL LADY KANE BREAK DEMS’ JINX?

Will Democrat candidate for Attorney General Kathleen Kane break the jinx that has kept Democrats forever out of winning that office since it first became a voters’ choice in the late ’80s?

She leads Republican David Freed 48% to 27% in current polling.

BROWNLEE HOSTS HOUSE COMMITTEE

State Rep. Michelle Brownlee (D-N. Phila.) is hosting a House Policy Committee meeting to examine cuts being proposed in the upcoming 2012-13 state budget next Tuesday at 10 a.m. at IBEW Local Union 98.

Scheduled to testify are Jerry Jordan, president, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers; J. Bruce Hulick, executive director, the Arc of Philadelphia/PDDC; Joe Willard, VP of policy, People’s Emergency Center; and a panel from Maternity Care Coalition: Letty Thall, public policy director; Erin Cusack, community engagement coordinator; Tamicka Stephens, Cribs for Kids advocate; and Aisha Coulson, EHS family and community partnerships coordinator.

For more information, contact Brownlee’s constituent-service office at (215) 684-3738.

Furrowing their brows in the jury box was a panel of a dozen 2nd-graders from Andrew Jackson ES at 11th & Ellsworth Streets. They had been sworn in before Judge Idee Fox to hear the dispute between Goldilocks and the Three Bears in order to celebrate “Law Day”.

COMMON PLEAS Judge Annette Rizzo welcomes students to Law Day mock trials as Councilwoman María Quiñones Sánchez waits to announce one trial will be conducted entirely in Spanish.

They were among 350 grade-schoolers who participated in mock trials at City Hall Friday of the legal disputes known popularly as “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”, “Three Little Pigs” and “Jack and the Beanstalk”. Students had received subpoenas at school prior to the event.

They were welcomed at City Hall’s ceremonial Courtroom 653 by President Judge Pamela Dembe, two City Council Members and a host of volunteers from the Philadelphia Bar Association who were helping to make this educational experience in American justice come off well.

“I must ask you not to form opinions about the facts, about right and wrong, until you have heard all that everyone has to say,” admonished Judge Dembe. “Do not rush to judgement.”

Afterwards, the students dispersed to 13 different courtrooms, where 13 different judges were presiding. After hour-long trials, the juries deliberated for 15 minutes to come up with their verdict.

For Andrew Jackson’s young citizens, the decision was complicated, but they made up their minds: Goldilocks was not guilty on one count, guilty on two counts.

It’s not known how Goldilocks reacted to the verdict. Andrew Jackson’s students, though (they’re known as “Jacksonians”), were very happy with the outcome.

“They loved it,” said their teacher Ms. Wendy Segal. “They loved being in the courtroom and really loved the judge. She shook all their hands.”

Judge Fox may have been especially warm because she’s a Jacksonian too. South Philly born, she graduated from Andrew Jackson … well, the Judge hasn’t been subpoenaed to testify, so we won’t say how many years ago.

Courtroom thinking is a featured part of Andrew Jackson’s educational experience, said Principal Lisa Kaplan.

“We are a very diverse school community,” explained Ms. Kaplan. “We may be more civic-minded than usual because many of our families are going through the process of seeking citizenship right now.”

So the school has a vigorous program of exposure to civic processes. Last fall, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor gave a presentation to Andrew Jackson, even swearing in its newly elected student government. The year before, Judge Midge Rendell – former Gov. Ed Rendell’s wife – did the honors.

Rest assured, then, Goldilocks’ fate was in good hands.

SS UNITED STATES, greatest ocean liner ever built, now rusts at dock in S. Phila.

BY RORY McGLASSON

The more than 75,000 daily commuters who pass through Manhattan’s Staten Island Ferry terminal are seeing a new and important message about an endangered national icon, the SS United States.

The recent installation of a 70-foot-long banner in the main waiting room of the famous Whitehall Terminal is part of the SS United States Conservancy’s year long program to raise awareness about America’s flagship, the SS United States, and advance the effort to restore and repurpose the historic vessel that once called New York home.

The huge banner also promotes a free exhibition at the Forbes Galleries, New York entitled “The Ocean Liner United States: Celebrating the Past and Future of America’s Flagship,” opening May 18 and running through Sep. 8, 2012. The SS United  State s exhibition will be free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Purchased by the Conservancy in 2011 to save the ship from the scrapyard, the SS United States awaits transformation into a museum and mixed-use waterfront destination in a major port city.

The new banner includes striking before and after photos of the ship showing her gleaming hull when she was launched with great fanfare in 1952, as well as in her current condition. Built to be both luxury superliner and Cold War weapon, America’s passenger flagship, the SS United States, was the fastest and safest ocean liner ever built. Larger than the Titanic and faster than the Queen Mary, the United States is one of the last remaining of the great 20th-century ocean liners and a symbol of American post-war innovation. The ship still holds the transatlantic speed record, having broken the record on her maiden voyage almost 60 years ago.

The United States is now berthed in Philadelphia awaiting revitalization. “Thousands of New Yorkers who take to the waves every day cross the very same channel where the SS United States set out to ferry presidents, celebrities, tourists and immigrants across the Atlantic,” says Susan Gibbs, executive director of the SS United States Conservancy. “We hope that this exposure and the exhibition will remind New Yorkers of their ties to the nation’s flagship.  Like the Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty, there is only one SS United States.  She deserves to be preserved for generations to come.”

The Conservancy is currently raising funds to maintain the ship and begin the restoration process. The group is also advancing an aggressive search for developers interested in using some of the vessel’s more than 500,000 square feet of usable space for a variety of commercial purposes. The ship’s former home port of New York, along with Miami and other possible locations, is being considered for the ship’s next port of call as a mixed-used destination.

State Rep. Rosita Youngblood ... Phila. must not be looted of its second casino license.

State Rep. Rosita C. Youngblood (D-Northwest), Democratic chair of the House Gaming Oversight Committee, decried the House passage of a bill that removes the stipulation that Philadelphia receive two casino licenses, saying this undermines a key provision in the State’s 2004 law that established gaming.

If the Senate also moves to pass HB 65, she charges, Philadelphia stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in construction spending and local-share revenue as well as several thousand family-sustaining jobs from the casino and related industries.

“When the gaming law was initially crafted, in a long and deliberative process, it was decided that Philadelphia was a logical place to award two casino licenses,” said Youngblood. “HB 65 changes the rules in mid-stream, by revoking one of those licenses and putting it up for auction, so it can be moved anywhere in the Commonwealth. This clearly was not the intent when this law was passed in 2004.”

CITY MAY LOSE BIG TAX DOLLARS

“The economy of Philadelphia and its surrounding counties will suffer tremendously if this attempted license pilfering succeeds,” said Youngblood, who called upon her colleagues in the State Senate to block the measure when it comes before them. “We should not open the door for other areas of the state to swoop in and fly away with a casino license that was originally promised to someone else.”

Philadelphia taxpayers  will also lose 35% of its allocated gaming revenue for property-tax relief, Youngblood said.

Current law requires Philadelphia to provide wage-tax relief, rather than property-tax relief, with its gaming revenues. This means people who work in Philadelphia but live in suburban counties receive a cut of the money that is meant to stay within the city’s borders. “Of the $346 million that is generated for Philadelphia through gaming, more than $122 million has been distributed to nonresidents of Philadelphia through suburban wage tax reductions,” Youngblood said. “And on top of that, those who work in Philadelphia but live outside the city also get property tax relief from their home county. Something just doesn’t add up here.

“If members of the General Assembly are eager to strip the city of its second license, and reduce the funding it can receive from hosting another casino, then we need to reassess the fact that more than $122 million has been bled out of Philadelphia and into surrounding counties.”

Youngblood said she will introduce legislation to change state law that requires the City to provide wage-tax relief and finally bring Philadelphia’s taxpayers to the same playing field as all other taxpayers across the Commonwealth.

“With the Mayor’s proposed ‘Actual Value Initiative,’ and the recent statements by city officials that the schools need more than $90 million right away in order for our public schools to open this fall, now is the time to reevaluate how gaming funding is applied in Philadelphia,” Youngblood said. “If the City’s officials are saying the sky will fall if the AVI is not implemented, then we need to find ways to soften the blow for our residents. One way we can reduce the burden is to finally start providing property-tax relief with the revenues we receive from gaming, and stop letting more than a third of that funding seep out into the suburbs.”

Youngblood said while her many efforts to provide solutions to keep the second casino in Philadelphia were rebuffed by a majority of House members, she succeeded in amending HB 65 so that all money raised by any auction of the casino license would go into the Property Tax Relief Fund. Youngblood said she was also able to secure an additional 2% from table-games revenue that will go toward tax relief.

She said it is imperative that Philadelphians see the relief that others across the state are seeing. “When I talk to citizens across my district, and throughout the city of Philadelphia, they seem confused as to how their taxes are impacted by gaming,” Youngblood said. “When I tell them it’s because we are the only County that does not provide property-tax relief from the proceeds, they are rightfully unhappy. If the Mayor is forcing the City to go to full property assessment, it is essential we use the funding we have, and get back the funding we should have, to help our property taxpayers.

“With the loss of the second casino on the horizon, it is even more important that we keep all of the funding that we are allocated in Philadelphia.”

Hosted by former Philadelphia Daily News columnist Elmer Smith, this year’s awardees include the following: the late Fatimah Ali, host of WURD-900AM’s The Real Deal With Fatimah Ali; CBS-3’s Jericka Duncan; Todd Bernstein, director of Global Citizen, the group that puts on the annual Martin Luther King Day of Service; former Philadelphia Inquirer managing editor Phillip Dixon; CNN regional all-platform journalist Sarah Hoye; and NBC-10’s Jennifer Wiggins. The keynote speaker for the event is Philadelphia Daily News columnist, Fox News contributor and Columbia University Professor Marc Lamont Hill.

I’ll have more information on tickets and where to get them at the end of this column, but I wanted to stop at Prof. Hill’s contribution to our awards program for a moment. Professor Hill represents a media subgroup that is starting to rise to prominence: the non-journalist journalist.

What do I mean? While Prof. Hill does many of the things journalists have traditionally done, such as write a column, host a television show, and serve as a pundit, he is not, technically, a journalist. But because he can ask for, and receive, press credentials, be honored for what is perceived as his contributions to journalism by various groups, and is given some of the other benefits of being a journalist, he is treated like one.

This is in no way Prof. Hill’s fault. And I don’t blame him at all for reaping these benefits. It’s part of a trend on the part of news organizations to farm out what journalists have traditionally done to people who are better known for doing other things. It’s an attempt on their part to try and get readers, listeners and viewers who have decided not to pay attention to traditional news providers to come back to them.

Think of it as a sort of newsroom stunt-casting. But as often happens with stunt-casting, things can go horribly awry.

For example, poor Prof. Hill won’t pull nearly the attendance the New York Association of Black Journalists will get when they have their awards ceremony. Why? Because one of their honorees is someone who’s much better known for her hair, her music, her husband and her baby than she is her ability to write. That honoree: Beyoncé.

NOTED Black journalist Beyoncé, apparently.

No, I’m not kidding. The Grammy-award winning singer and actress is being honored for her contributions to journalism.

You’re probably saying, “Denise, what contribution could Beyoncé have possibly made to journalism other than being the subject of reams of copy?”

Beyoncé, it turns out, is being awarded for a piece she wrote for Essence magazine entitled “Eat, Play, Love” about her (all too) brief break from being in the public eye. The Dallas Association of Black Journalists, the group that did the judging for the New York chapter, said the reason they chose it was because it was “inspirational.”

When I first got wind the recent winner of People magazine’s “Most Beautiful Woman In The World” honor was going to get a journalism award, I wanted to see the article in question. I read it with an open mind and was even able to get past the picture of the author dressed in a white crop top with leather pants, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat while swinging a lasso.

To be brutally honest, I’ve seen better-written pieces from my first-year journalism students at Temple. Heck, I wrote better pieces as a first-year journalism student at Temple. But I have to remember I’m not a chart-topping artist who is going to be opening the Revel Casino Hotel in Atlantic City with a series of sold-out shows. For me to get a gig for Essence magazine, I might actually have to, well, be able to write or report.

Now, I know some of you are looking at this and thinking, “Gee! What a hater!” I’m not hating on Mrs. Knowles-Carter. She got asked to write something. She wrote it. Essence published it. She’s being honored for it. I don’t hate the playa. The game, however, is really starting to tick me off.

Compared to where we were as a nation 10 years ago in terms of being informed, we’re about as dumb as a box of rocks these days … and most of the fault for this I place at the feet of journalism that focuses more on celebrity than it does actual news. This bells-and-whistles journalism has led to a news media that doesn’t think before it reacts, is scared of telling it like it is, and forces us to look at things as equals when even Stevie Wonder could tell you they’re not.

In other words, the journalism epitomized by folks like Walter Cronkite would have told its editors that there’s no way they’re going to give the Tea Party the same amount of ink that it gives more reasonable voices while today’s journalism practically gives it and those of its ilk a megaphone, which it then uses to drown out all reasonable voices.

So like I said, I’m not mad at Beyoncé. Or Prof. Hill. Or Prof. Melissa Harris-Perry, who has her own show on MSNBC, a network whose news director told us all point-blank that journalists need not apply for the right to inform people on his network. But if I were a member of NYABJ who had just gotten a rejection letter from Essence recently, I’d feel some kind of way after seeing this.

Tickets for the PABJ Awards Ceremony are $45 for general admission and $25 for full-time students with ID. The deadline to purchase tickets is May 14. For tickets, contact Melanie Burney at (215) 854-2289 or mburney@phillynews.com. Tickets can also be ordered by sending a check or money order payable to PABJ to P.O. Box 8232, Philadelphia, PA 19101. Tickets may also be purchased via PayPal by designating pabj@pabj.org as the payee.

Just this week, a construction worker fell to his death at a construction site at 20th & Parrish.

The 148 deaths recorded in 2012 can be considered very high, given the continued level of unemployment. Twenty of the deaths were among public-sector workers. Construction deaths continued to take the highest toll, followed by transportation and goods movement, agriculture, landscaping, and workplace homicides. Recycling work proved to be fatal, as well as energy-related drilling, and retail work. The youngest victim was 13 years old and the oldest 78 years old.

BANNER says it all as union leaders gathered at annual commemoration of Workers Memorial Day, honoring 148 who lost their lives on the job in tri-state area.

Keynote speaker Dr. Marilyn V. Howarth, MD, president of Howarth Occupational and Environmental Consulting, PC, challenged local, state and federal governments to do more to insure safety on all worksites. PHILAPOSH Director Barbara Rahke and AFL-CIO President Pat Eiding urged those attending to continue to alert their labor forces to the many dangers to which they are exposed on a daily basis.

Other guest speakers included John Johnson, president , TWU Local 234; John Clark, business manager, Boilermakers Local 13; and Holly Shaw-Hollis of the PHILAPOSH Board. Philaposh also honored Jim Moran, Aggie Moran, Ludy Soderman, Mike Schurr, AFSCME DC 47 Health &Safety Advisory Committee for their contributions during the year toward increasing safety awareness.

Families of six workers killed among the 148 honored were among the guests.

Following the breakfast, each of the attendees work a sign of a deceased worker as they paraded along Columbus Avenue to Penn’s Landing leading a coffin accompanied by a bagpiper. At the Landing, a memorial service was held with the reading of the names of each worker commemorated.

All these monetary woes stem from two things: vast amounts of data poorly managed, and collaboration between different agencies poorly managed. The resulting losses are staggering: $470 million in unpaid property tax, $1 billion in skipped bail, an undetermined amount of unpaid fines, incalculable losses from land left unproductive.

The first problem is serious enough. The City of Philadelphia never entered the computer age in a serious way. Its various departments’ IT systems often can’t talk with each other. Vital reforms like actual-value tax assessment have been hobbled for years because raw data still cannot be crunched.

No other business that handles real money these days does so without state-of-the-art information technology. How can a bank keep track of yours and a million other customers’ credit-card purchases in real time? How can an airline tell you’ve got the seat you paid for when you arrive at the airport – one of 100,000 passengers that day between 100 different places around the world? Well-designed computer networks.

Philadelphia’s government needs a new generation of technology if it is to pay its bills. It can’t afford leaky data systems any more than the Water Dept. can afford leaky pipes.

To its credit, the Nutter Administration has invested heavily in upgrading the City’s IT – $64 million into the Technology Division for FY 2011-12, up from $38 million in FY 2008-09. A few results are already visible; the Managing Director claims all City-owned property is now in a single database. We hope to hear much more good news on this front, preferably tomorrow.

But computers alone won’t do it. Agencies must be trained to work in unison if they’re to tackle mammoth catchup tasks like back property-tax collection. And since these agencies all have other ongoing work to do – they’ll probably need to budget extra staff and resources in order to bring in extra money. This is true even amidst a large budget crisis – in fact, it’s especially true then. When you need rain, pay the rainmakers.

At first glance, the Administration has not funded its rainmaking offices this way. Its various financial-office budgets are down 31% over the last three years. Licensing & Inspections is down 20%. The Law Dept. budget is down 13%. Perhaps it was trying to spread the pain evenly during a severe recession.

If so, it was a short-sighted move. Inspectors, auditors and attorneys are needed to bring home this bacon. If we want more bacon, perhaps we should hire more of them. Throwing money at a problem isn’t always an answer. It is unlikely, though, we can ever collect the huge sums now owed the City if we don’t invest in this challenge.

Concerns over Mayor Michael Nutter’s Actual Value Initiative have prompted two state lawmakers to scrutinize the plan more closely. State Sen. Mike Stack and State Rep. Mike McGeehan (both D-Northeast) are offering alternative solutions that would put pressure on the City to collect property taxes on delinquent homeowners and would ease the impending financial burden on taxpayers.

No one disputes the current system (if it can be called one) of assessing property taxes is complex, chaotic, arbitrary, unjust, and probably illegal as well. The City was looking into ways of transitioning to taxation based on true market value under the Street Administration. Now, in Street’s successor’s second term, it’s still looking.

Spurred by revenue shortfalls, Nutter is moving to jump-start the process in the 2012-13 Fiscal Year. While he calls the AVI plan “revenue-neutral,” it would measure new wealth based on real-estate prices which have risen substantially in some parts of town, thereby bringing in an additional $90 million in taxes – but at the expense of many longtime homeowners.

Not so fast, say Stack and McGeehan. Before the City takes more money from taxpayers, it should collect the money it’s owed by tax-dodgers. Philadelphia has a tax delinquency rate of 19%. Delinquent taxpayers owe the city over $470 million as of 2011. Both lawmakers are urging the Nutter administration to prioritize property tax collections by going after the delinquent taxpayers first.

Stack has introduced SB 1505, which would prohibit the City of Philadelphia from increasing property taxes if the City’s property-tax collection rate is less than 95%. Currently it stands at 81%. “This is way lower than most other municipalities achieve,” Stack explained. “A typical expectation for tax collection is 95%.”

SPEAKING FROM front porch of a Tacony householder, State Sen. Mike Stack and State Rep. Mike McGeehan announced launch of measures that will, among other things, stop Phila. from raising real-estate taxes until it achieves 95% tax-collection rate -- far cry from this city's 81% rate, which Stack called "broken for a long time." We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore, McGeehan insisted.

Stack and McGeehan met last week with longtime homeowners in the Tacony section of the city who fear getting clobbered by AVI. “How much more can we afford?” asked business owner Georgeanne Labovitz. “The City can’t keep taking and expecting us to keep giving.”

Stack said the owners of the Thomas W. Buck Hosiery building in Kensington, which caught fire and killed two Philadelphia firefighters, owe nearly $400,000 in back property taxes. “A tragedy could have been prevented if these property owners, who also have a stack of Dept. of Licenses & Inspections violations against them, were taken to task by the city,” Stack said. “Instead, the city is targeting longtime homeowners, many of whom have spent most of their lives in their large old houses or inherited homes from family members.

“Let’s call this plan what it is — a tax hike,” said Stack. “Philadelphians have already endured two years of so-called temporary tax increases. Rather than placing the burden on the homeowners who pay their taxes, the city should first go after the many property owners who have failed to pay their taxes.”

McGeehan plans to introduce companion legislation in the State House of Representatives soon. “Philadelphians are taxed enough, and they are going to be punished after this reassessment,” said McGeehan. “Our wallets are being tapped again because the City let the property-assessment system spiral out of control. We need to offer some protection from the financial pain that many residents will endure soon.”

Stack and McGeehan have also introduced legislation that would ease the burden on Philadelphia homeowners upon reassessment. Their identical legislation (SB 1504 and HB 1600) would impose a homestead property-tax exemption for owner-occupied properties, from both city and school district taxes. The bill would also give home-owning senior citizens in Philadelphia with household incomes of $60,000 or less, the option to defer the payment of property-tax increases until they sell their house. Homeowners who have lived at their primary residence for 20 or more years would receive the same tax-deferment opportunity. Recently unemployed homeowners would receive a one-year deferment, which would be collected upon the sale of the home.

Another bill introduced by McGeehan would put Philadelphia homeowners on par with the rest of the state under the General County Assessment Law. Currently, all Pennsylvania jurisdictions except Philadelphia may reduce their tax rates for one year to equal the preceding year upon reassessment. HB 937 would offer Philadelphians the same anti-windfall protection, as well as an annual 5% cap on each preceding assessment.

“The City’s former Board of Revision of Taxes created absolute chaos out of the property-assessment system, which is why we’re faced with this current plan to overhaul the system,” McGeehan said. “Many Philadelphia homeowners will be hit hard by this reassessment through no fault of their own. They deserve some cushion to ease the financial blow.”

Philadelphia’s property taxes are such a big mystery, it’s not even clear why they haven’t been fixed to date, after years of trying. The Nutter Administration has consistently cited obsolete and mutually incompatible information systems in the different departments that deal with delinquent properties – the Revenue Dept., the Law Dept., Licensing & Inspections, and the Sheriff’s Office. Each of these agencies also has a different set of internal objectives and priorities; if they’re not pulling in the same direction, it may be hard to get them to coordinate on a common task.

Other local governments manage coordinate different departments well enough to collect taxes, however.

State Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Northeast) has joined the effort, introducing legislation to ensure Philadelphia’s planned reassessment will be revenue-neutral.

“As the City proceeds to implement full-value reassessment, the transition should not unfairly burden our neighbors who will find the value of their properties vastly different – seemingly overnight,” Boyle said. “Similarly, this change in policy should not provide an unreasonable windfall to city government. My bill would protect Philadelphians from an outrageous hike in their property taxes while not depriving city officials of much-needed revenue,” he continued. “This balance will allow both parties to adjust much more smoothly to the new assessment design.”

Boyle also intends to amend any existing legislation that concerns Philadelphia’s planned reassessment with his revenue-neutral requirement.

Can these Notheast lawmakers’ relief efforts arrive in time to forestall AVI? If their measures aren’t passed by December, they will die in the General Assembly. In a legislature totally controlled by Republicans, it is often hard for Democrats to put their own agenda on a fast track.

In this case, though, the two Northeast Donkeys are appealing to a core Elephant urge: stopping tax increases. If Stack and McGeehan play their cards right, they may be able to put a temporary halt on AVI – and give the City’s fiscal gurus a new hot project: going after that missing $470 million as fast as possible.

It wasn’t the cigars, or the various wines, or the VIP crowd of regular supporters who appreciate Taylor’s solid performances in the State General Assembly as the 177th Dist.’s legislator since 1984. It was the amazing fact, through the crowded rooms of this historical site, Republican leaders from both factions of the Republican City Committee were there, acting as though they were of one mind as well as talking to each other.

That could not have happened had the event been for any other major player in this city’s Republican Party. Taylor (R-Kensington), who, together with Vince Fenerty and other key ward leaders, as well as Republican Counsel Michael Meehan and Chairman Vito Canuso, have spent a great deal of effort to bring the existing factions together.

Taylor, reportedly, would have accepted a draft replacement when Gleason announced the State Committee no longer recognized Canuso as chair. But the Gleason-led Philadelphia group wanted one of their own, insisting, after some jockeying, on Rich Hellberg for that role. Others, within the state loyalist group, have offered as candidates Ward Leaders Mike Cibik or Joe DeFelice.

If Mitt Romney hopes to get a crack at winning Pennsylvania, he needs someone to pressure a compromise. Recent polling before and after the primary shows there is no expectation younger voters who turned out en masse to support President Barack Obama the first time around, will do so again. They face a jobless job market, especially among the new generation of high-school and college graduates. Older employees in both the public and private sectors are not retiring when they can because of a growing inflation and uncertainty with the economy. Both age groups are looking with disdain on the political system.

Pennsylvania is considered to be one of the swing states, crucial to Obama’s reelection or defeat. If the City Republican Party doesn’t come together early this summer, the continued vacuum will support Congressman Bob Brady’s tireless efforts to lead the Democrats to another major, if not record, turnout for Obama.

Unique to the Republican Party in this town is the fact it now has a number of active Black Republican leaders, who, if given the guidance necessary to grow their ward registrations, could conceivably cut some of the turnout numbers hoped for in this city by the Obama campaign team.

Gov. Tom Corbett, through surrogate Gleason, has called for greater effort from the Republicans in this city to tap into those potential registrations. This has not happened, though Gleason continues to fund the opposition to the present Republican City Committee leadership. A number of the state-supported ward leaders campaigned hard to win slots as delegates to the Republican National Convention in Tampa, but their combined efforts produced few new registrations. A look at the primary results in Philadelphia found better support for Gov. Corbett’s nominee for US Senate, Steve Welch, from within the wards controlled by the Republican City Committee.

Philadelphia now only has one Republican legislator in its House caucus. That is Taylor, and that’s why he must take himself out of consideration for the post of Republican city chairman. He now has his hands full as the point man for key city legislation and funding; luckily for the city, he is a key Republican within the GOP-dominated legislature. His importance in that role was made more obvious by the appearance of Mayor Michael Nutter at the fundraiser.

Taylor’s effectiveness has resulted in, just this year alone, the legislature’s advance toward a Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Foreclosure programs, helping the city with land-bank bills, working to keep Catholic schools open and helping charter schools. In addition to his role as chairman of the House Liquor Control Committee, Taylor has also been deeply involved in the problem of school violence and has been at the forefront of the fight against the abuses of Oxycontin, the prescription painkiller. Also an attorney, he is of counsel to the firm of Archer & Greiner law firm.

Corbett, who gave the green light to the effort by Republican leaders here to remove Vito Canuso from leadership, could easily be blamed for a poor November effort by the Republicans in this city. Corbett needs to bring the factions together, yet by his actions, it is obvious he is not sweating Philadelphia for any reason. His disdain for this city is made more obvious as he continues to appoint, reappoint, and elevate to state agencies Republicans from every other county but ours.

If the GOP doesn’t hurriedly bury its differences to form a united front, the Democrats will have an easier time rolling up the majorities of voters set for them by the Obama team, which began kicking up the registration drive this past weekend in Oak Lane. That kickoff was led by State Rep. Dwight Evans (D-N. Phila.) and Councilwoman Marian Tasco.

THE SWITCHAROO! Now that former political director of IBEW Local 98 Bobby Henon is 6th Dist. Councilman, childhood friend, Marita Crawford, has filled his shoes as new Political Director for Local 98. Crawford has had years of political experience with Democratic City Committee, Congressman Bob Brady and was Chief of Staff for Councilman Bill Green. Photo: Maria Merlino

BOYLE PROVES SOME WARD LEADERS WEAK

State Rep. Kevin J. Boyle (D-Northeast) won a landslide victory in the Democratic primary, beating opponent challenger Danny Collins by over 30 points (67%-33%). This was Collins’ second run for State Representative; he lost in 2010. On primary night, Boyle said, “I commend my opponent for a hard-fought race and wish him well.”

The victory was even more interesting in the fact Boyle was not supported by three ward leaders in the district: Bernice Hill, Pat Parkinson and John Sabatina, Sr. They supported Collins. Boyle won Bernice Hill’s 63rd Ward by an astounding 48 points (74% to 26%). Boyle said, “I want to thank those 63rd Ward committeepersons who strongly supported me, despite the fact I wasn’t supported by their ward leader. The results speak volumes.”

According to campaign finance reports filed with the Department of State, Sabatina funded most of the Collins campaign. “It’s a humiliating defeat for John Sabatina,” explained Seth Kaplan, Boyle’s chief of staff. “He handpicked Danny Collins to run against Kevin,” Kaplan added, “Sabatina tried to knock us off, and he failed miserably.” Boyle attributed his victory to the fact, “For the last 16 months, I have worked day and night to represent the people of my district, from Fox Chase to Mayfair, from Bustleton to Tacony. This big victory validates all of that hard work.”

WHAT WERE WE DRINKING LAST WEEK?

Pat Murphy and Pat Meehan were on our mind election day and the day after, so when it came to writing up winners and losers in the State House races, we reported, “ In the 173rd, Congressman Pat Meehan has a well deserved ride to Harrisburg unopposed by a Republican candidate in the general election.” Everyone knows the “boss” of the 173rd is State Rep. Michael McGeehan.

DeWEESE WINS; AND LOSES

State Rep. Bill DeWeese (D-Greene), a long-time power broker in the State House, was sentenced this week to 30 to 60 months in state prison on his convictions for using state-paid employees on his election campaigns.

Dauphin Co. President Judge Todd A. Hoover imposed the sentence, plus $25,000 in fines and $116,000 in restitution, little more than two months after a county jury convicted the 35-year Democratic legislator of multiple counts of theft, conspiracy and conflict of interest. He had to resign, despite his primary victory.

Gone will be the need for his colleagues in the House to carry dictionaries with them when they debated him.

BABETTE’S THOUGHTS ON DEFEAT BY SIMS

State Rep. Babette Josephs (D-S. Phila.) conceded the race for the 182nd House Dist. to Brian Sims, saying, “My congratulations go out to the Democratic nominee Brian Sims and all of his supporters. “Throughout many difficult, but successful races in my long service, I have consistently said the voters are always right. I cannot change my tune now. I am truly grateful to the voters for allowing me to serve them for so long and for the opportunity to work with so many dedicated, talented, patient and professional colleagues, staff members and volunteers.”

Sims thanked her, saying, “Our margin of victory was less than 250 votes” and adding, “Pennsylvania has taken a huge leap forward by electing its first openly gay state legislator.”

JOHNSON’S THOUGHTS ON HIS DEFEAT

With the final tallies showing he ran third in the 180th House Dist. primar,y which saw State Rep. Angel Cruz (D-Kensington) easily reelected, followed by challenger Jonathan Ramos, Anthony Johnson blames his “bitter pill to swallow was the abysmal voter turnout, with less than 6,000 voting in a population of 60,000.”

PHILLY’S GREENS ARE STAR-STRUCK

Chris Robinson reports the Green Party of Philadelphia voters met at the Buzz Café, in Kensington for a presidential caucus. The local Greens considered three candidates for the Green Party’s nomination to run for President of the US. They were Dr. Jill Stein, Roseanne Barr and Dr. Kent Mesplay.

The caucus was star-struck. Actress Barr received 55% of the votes, Stein 40% and Mesplay 5%. She’s not home free, though, since similar Green caucuses are being held throughout the Commonwealth and those delegates go to their national convention Jul. 12-15 in Baltimore.

LIBERTARIANS MEET IN VEGAS

Best way to get a convention crowd is to hold it in Las Vegas, which is why the Libertarian Party expects about 700 delegates at its National Convention at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas this weekend. The Libertarian Party’s nominating process differs significantly from that of the Republican and Democratic Parties. Both the presidential and vice presidential nominees are elected at the convention through independent voting processes starting with the presidential nomination. The presidential nominee does not choose his or her running mate.

BRIAN SIMS ... toppled an incumbent.

Here’s how it happened. In the 182nd District, which represents Rittenhouse Square, Logan Square, Southwest Center City and Queen Village, Brian Sims edged out incumbent State Rep. Babette Josephs 3,661 votes­ to 3,428 votes.

The 8th Ward’s 30 divisions, which occupy most of Center City west of Broad, are going to generate more than half the votes in any 182nd Dist. election. The 8th is incumbent State Representative Babette Josephs’ home ward, and 8th Ward voters have given her big margins over challengers in past elections. In the 2010 primary, Josephs won 3,116 votes in the 8th Ward, giving her a major edge over challenger Gregg Kravitz and contributing to her 5,683-3,677 victory over Kravitz.

The 2012 primary was different. This time, Josephs’ 8th Ward total was only 1,916 votes, a result nearly equaled by challenger Sims, who won 1,803 votes in the ward. How did Sims differ from the other candidates who had gone up against Josephs during the past decade? According to committeepersopns and volunteers outside 8th Ward polling places, Sims had a record of community service, was not a polarizing figure, and had raised enough money to mount a credible challenge.

And what was wrong with Josephs? To some, she conveyed a sense of a lifetime entitlement to her House seat; she didn’t work hard enough; she hadn’t accomplished much; and the “men with breasts” comment (Josephs’ characterization of GOP women who supported ultrasound for women seeking abortions) was offensive.

In addition to his strong showing in the 8th Ward, Brian Sims performed well in the 5th Ward (10 divisions in Center City east of Broad) where he outpolled Josephs 640-385 and in the 30th Ward (five divisions south of Lombard, west of Broad) where he earned 452 votes, compared with Josephs’ 265. Josephs’ won the 36th Wards’ seven divisions, 355-196, but her margin in this relatively small area was not sufficient to offset losses elsewhere in the district.

In terms of money, Sims4PAPAC, the campaign finance committee for Brian Sims, began raising money early.  The first report that appears for his committee online is 2011 cycle 7. Although the committee raised only $500 from PACs, the committee did end up raising a total of $66,529.60 near the end of the year. In the first two cycles of 2012, Sims raised another $83,080, with only $250 coming from PACs. It should be noted that Sims received $14,550 as in-kind contributions from the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund in Washington, D.C. for such items as research and messaging research. Sims appears to have spent $28,842.32 on direct mail and $516.78 on food for volunteers. He also appeared to have a paid staff which cost him $23,060.47 in payroll and payroll expense.

By contrast, Josephs raised only $12,300 in 2011, and $50,625 in 2012 cycle 1 and 2012 cycle 2. In stark contrast to Sims, $35,050 of Joseph’s money came from PACs. Her committee had no expenses in 2011, indicating she did not begin gearing up for the primary until after the first of the year. She appears to have had a campaign staff, and paid $17,000 on items such as staff services in 2012 cycle 1 and 2012 cycle 2. In addition, she paid only $7,174.52 for mailers and a bulk mail permit — approximately 1/4 of what the Sims campaign spent on direct mail. Finally, in her expenses, we see no volunteer expenses to speak of in her reports.

It is clear Josephs was depending on the Democratic party to carry her through the primary. In this case, it did not work, and she was beaten by a margin large enough so as not to trigger a recount.

JIM ROEBUCK ... survived an all-out assault.

In the 188th Dist., representing Spruce Hill, Cedar Park and Southwest Philadelphia, State Rep. James R. Roebuck beat back a strong challenge by Fatimah Loren Muhammad, 3,888 votes to 3,081 votes.

A billboard displaying the well-known Obama “Hope” image, accompanied  by an image of State Representative candidate Fatimah Muhammad in a similar style, can be seen by voters a half-block away from the 46th Ward, 19th Division polling place, the Garden Court Plaza, located at 47th & Pine. Muhammad posters are taped to telephone poles lining the approach to the polling site. Outside the entrance to Garden Court, Muhammad campaign workers are distributing sample ballots and flyers, including a Liberty City flyer urging voters to “Be part of history by voting for … FATIMAH MUHAMMAD —helping to elect the first out members of the LGBT community to the state legislature in the history of Pennsylvania!”

In 2010, Roebuck won 46/19 with 220 of 223 votes cast in this division (he was virtually unchallenged in that race). This time, a total of 235 votes were cast in 46/19, with 182 for Roebuck and 53 for Muhammad. In all, Muhammad won 10 of the 23 divisions in the 46th, Roebuck’s home ward. Although she lost the 46th Ward  decisively, Muhammad won the 60th Ward’s nine divisions (south of Market between 45th and 52nd), 682-443, and nearly matched Roebuck’s results in the 51st Ward’s 11 divisions (south of Baltimore Avenue between 50th and 58th Streets).

Roebuck’s victory was made possible in large part by substantial margins in the University City-oriented divisions between 45th and 49th Streets, where he outpolled Muhammad by as much as 5 to 1, as well as by his 522-277 victory over Muhammad in the 27th Ward’s 18th division (east of 45th , south of Market).

According to a Roebuck supporter outside the polling place for the 46th Ward’s 1st Division, located opposite the St. Francis de Sales Catholic church, many of the parents picking up their children at the de Sales parochial school that afternoon were Roebuck supporters — this election was about a lot more than vouchers (a barrage of negative advertising by the Muhammad campaign during the weeks leading up to the election had portrayed Roebuck as a staunch opponent of school choice). Roebuck won the 1st division decisively, with 141 votes to Muhammad’s 34 (in 2010, Roebuck had received 155 votes in the 1st Division).

Muhammad raised enough money to mount a credible campaign against Roebuck. In 2012 cycle 1 and cycle 2 alone she raised $75,195.03 — $49,400.00, or almost 2/3, through PAC contributions. Roebuck, on the other hand, began 2012 with $42,106.92 in the bank, and raised an additional $21,841.83 in 2012 cycle 1 and cycle 2 to give him a total of $63,948.75 available to spend. Of this amount, $23,050.00 came from PACs, and $13,950 came from individual contributions.

Of the PAC contributions, $500 came from APPAC (Associates of PA PAC) which appears to have received large sums of money from well-heeled donors over the past few years, including charter-school proponent Vahan H. Gureghian. Additional education-related contributions came from Faculty Federation of the Community College of Philadelphia ($500) and Philadelphia Federation of Teachers Committee to Support Public Education ($5,000).

During 2011 and 2012, Roebuck’s campaign had only $48,963.51 in expenses. $6,444 of this amount was in public-relations work. There were no staff, payroll, or volunteer expenses in 2011 or 2012, indicating that Roebuck was intent on using the well-established Democratic machine in West Philadelphia to turn out votes for him. On the other hand, Muhammad spent $25,259.90 on canvassers and canvassing related expenditures. She also spent $13,118.77 on wages for staff in 2012.

Two takeaways from the candidacy of Muhammad and certain other candidates in the 2010 primary:

The SuperPACs have now entered the city limits. The pro-voucher Students First PAC that funded a major portion of State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams’ 2010 statewide campaign for Governor was a major contributor to Muhammad’s campaign, and this PAC and others like it have the potential to become a force in local Philadelphia politics. For a SuperPAC, a political campaign represents a short-tem investment that can produce long-term benefits if the candidate wins. Will other SuperPACs — both right- and left-leaning — get involved in Philadelphia politics in the future? With a growing population, a revitalized downtown, and newly-trendy neighborhoods emerging despite the setbacks of the recession, Philadelphia could be viewed as a promising location for political investment by outsiders — with serious consequences for the city.

2. Williams has made major advances in building a political infrastructure — one that includes challengers such as Muhammad and other Students First-supported candidates, as well as recently elected officials such as 2nd Dist. Councilman Kenyatta Johnson — and this infrastructure is likely to grow stronger as plans for the 2015 mayoral election take shape. Mayor Michael Nutter never had a grassroots political infrastructure, with consistently loyal supporters capable of influencing political outcomes in large areas of the city, and neither did his three predecessors (although Wilson Goode’s election as Mayor owed much to the political infrastructure skillfully managed by then-Congressman William Gray).

MICHELLE BROWNLEE ... walked home against 3 challengers.

In the 195th Dist., representing Fairmount, Brewerytown, Lower North Philadelphia West, Mantua and Powelton Village, Michelle F. Brownlee trounced Andrew Kleeman 4,355 to 2532 votes. Challenger Kleeman spent a lot of his own funds to support his candidacy for State Representative in the 195th Dist., just as Howard Treatman had done in his 2011 campaign for the 8th District City Council seat. Andrew Kleeman lost the 2012 primary election because his campaign was not enough like that of Bloomberg and too much like that of Treatman: a well-financed effort by a candidate who was not well known throughout the voting area and not deemed as reliable as his main opponent.

During the slow mid-afternoon hours, Councilman at Large and 15th Ward Leader Bill Greenlee stood outside the 1st and 2nd Division polling place at Trinity Baptist Church near 27th & Poplar, in the heart of the “Art Museum” area. During the course of one five-minute interval, he approached three voters who were about to enter the polling place and encouraged them to vote for incumbent candidate Michelle Brownlee. One was an older white woman who appeared to be a longtime resident of the area; another was a young man with the “hipster” appearance of some of the newer residents of the area (casual attire, facial hair); a third was a young woman of color (longish hair, piercing), who could have been a newcomer or a second-generation family member. Each of these voters paused, listened to Brownlee, took the sample ballot he offered, and walked into the polling place past a Kleeman Election Day worker.

Greenlee was promoting Brownlee (an interesting last-name similarity!) as a known quantity, as a candidate that could deliver reliable service to the community. She brought the new supermarket to the neighborhood. She created a job bank (What’s a job bank? one voter asked. Answer: her office has information about job openings).

For many voters in a district such as the 195th, a candidate who is believed to be reliable and capable of delivering services is likely to be judged superior to a candidate who may be intelligent, creative, and professionally successful but who is not known in the district’s neighborhoods.

The primary-election results support this conclusion. Despite organizing a much better financed campaign, Kleeman won about the same number of votes as Brownlee’s 2010 challenger, Anthony P. Ingargiola (Ingargiola’s vote total was 2,274, compared with Brownlee’s 2010 total of 4,459). Like Ingargiola, Kleeman made a strong showing in the 15th Ward (Spring Garden to Poplar west of Broad), where he defeated Brownlee, 1,262 to 931. But Brownlee outpolled Kleeman decisively everywhere else, by roughly 2-to-1 and 3-to-1 margins: 1,217-326 and 1,140-453 in the 29th and 32nd wards, respectively (north of Poplar to north of Diamond),  798-370 in the 24th Ward (Mantua and Powelton), and 269-121 in the 6th (six divisions west of 40th and Haverford).

Two African American candidates other than Brownlee participated in the election, but these two candidates together won only 648 votes, about 8% of the overall vote total — so any expectation that these candidates would split the African American votes to Kleeman’s advantage proved to be unfounded.

With increasing enrollment at Drexel and an influx of younger, white population north from Powelton Village into Mantua, Kleeman might have anticipated achieving strong results in the 24th Ward (Schuylkill River to 40th Street, north of Market). However, this area did not produce a significant number of votes for Kleeman. Of the five divisions that are located within the Drexel-influenced triangle bounded by the Schuylkill River, Lancaster Avenue, and Spring Garden Street, three are low-turnout divisions (which produced a combined total of 17 votes for Kleeman and Brownlee), and the other two provided Kleeman with very small margins (33-23 and 46-32).

In the 195th Dist., Kleeman needed a benefit that Fatima Muhammad had from the start in her campaign in the 188th. Although Muhammad may not have been well known to many voters in the 188th Dist. at the beginning of her campaign, Sen. Williams’ political allies (who delivered large numbers of votes for his 2010 gubernatorial campaign in the 46th Ward and elsewhere in the 188th Dist.) provided Muhammad with a support network that nurtured her candidacy and brought out the votes. Kleeman’s candidacy did not start out with a comparable network in the 195th Dist., and Kleeman did not have the ability to create one within the time available.

By contrast to the other two challengers mentioned here, Kleeman only raised $50,005 in the reporting 2012 cycle 1 and 2. The campaign received no PAC money — all of his contributions were from individuals. The largest contribution by far was made by the candidate himself, $38,900, all of which is shown as a loan to his campaign. Kleeman received only 52 contributions for his campaign.

By contrast, his opponent, Brownlee, received 5,532.39 in 2012 cycle 1 and 2012 cycle 2. The bulk of this money, $5,400.00, came from PACs.

Kleeman spent $27,070.12 during 2012 cycle 1 and 2, most of it for consulting and polling ($16,864.88.) He also spent $2,000.00 on database consulting, and only $270.00 on postage. There are no expenses shown for volunteers or staff.

Brownlee, on the other hand, spent only $5,950.60 in 2011 and $3,889.87 in 2012 in the run-up to the campaign. There are two expenditures that relate to campaign door knocker distribution that total $1,631.62. There are no volunteer or staff expenses shown. Like Roebuck, it is apparent Brownlee was intent on using the established Democratic machine in her area to get out the vote.