Steering Committee recommendations to membership for candidate endorsements
Reclaim Philadelphia’s endorsements are decided by members. All members can and should participate in the endorsement process! Candidates who receive the votes of at least 60% of the participating members (members who submit a ballot) are endorsed. Not a member? You can become one now to weigh in on endorsements and other future important decisions about the direction of Reclaim Philadelphia and our movement.
In advance of candidate endorsements, Reclaim’s Steering Committee leads a process of gathering information and viewpoints from candidate questionnaires, Reclaim staff members and other advocates, and aligned organizations. Based on this research, the Steering Committee makes recommendations, which you can read below. We hope this research is informative. Edit Reclaim Philadelphia’s Steering Committee has issued an addendum to this endorsement recommendations, which you can find here.
Our membership endorsement ballot is here. Members can vote until midnight Saturday 2/12/22.
House District 175
Steering Committee Recommendation: MAKE NO ENDORSEMENT
Mary Isaacson and Samm Pheiffer both submitted questionnaires. Since then, Samm Pheiffer has made the difficult decision to end her campaign because of personal issues that come from existing as a working-class mother under capitalism.
Mary Isaacson began representing the district in 2018. When her predecessor retired after the primary election, ward leaders and powerful political actors chose Isaacson, his Chief of Staff, to be the Democratic nominee and successor. At the time, Reclaim Philadelphia registered our opposition to both the process and the appointment, calling instead for a more fair, transparent, and democratic process. Isaacson was barely re-nominated in 2020, winning a contentious multi-challenger primary election with just 37% of the vote.
In her three years in office, Isaacson has not led on any of Reclaim’s priority issues or efforts. She endorsed Larry Farnese over Nikil Saval for Senate District 1 in the 2020 primary. On mass incarceration, she failed to support District Attorney Larry Krasner for re-election, spoke favorably of the politicized attempts known as “concurrent jurisdiction” to undermine the District Attorney, and co-sponsored new mandatory minimum sentencing (e.g., HB338). On immigrant rights, she voted in support of E-Verify, an employment verification process that makes it difficult and sometimes impossible for undocumented workers to obtain employment in certain sectors. She has received financial contributions from numerous corporate PACs, such as PECO and UnitedHealth Group, that actively block progress on everything from climate to health care. While the Steering Committee commends her for filling out Reclaim’s questionnaire and is heartened to see her adopting progressive positions to seek Reclaim Philadelphia’s support, the Steering Committee recommends that members vote to make no endorsement in this race.
House District 177
Steering Committee Recommendation: MAKE NO ENDORSEMENT
Joe Hohenstein was Reclaim Philadelphia’s first ever political endorsement. We previously endorsed him in both 2016 (he lost) and 2018 (he won). Reclaim’s membership chose to not endorse him in 2020. In office Hohenstein has not established himself as the force for change in his district that we had hoped, and he’s been inconsistent in his alignment with Reclaim and the progressive movement’s priorities. For example, Hohenstein has co-sponsored bills—and even authored one, HB338—that create new mandatory minimum prison sentencing law, clearly demonstrating that he views keeping people in cages as a solution to community harm. (It is not.) During the uprisings last year, he put out statements condemning both sides and giving legitimacy to white supremacists. He’s aligned himself against the candidates our membership has chosen to support; he endorsed Larry Farnese over Nikil Saval in 2020, and failed to support Larry Krasner for re-election. For these reasons, the Steering Committee recommends that members vote to make no endorsement in this race.
House District 184
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE ELIZABETH FIEDLER
Elizabeth Fiedler first won her seat in 2018 when Reclaim Philadelphia endorsed her for the first time. She was once again endorsed by Reclaim members in 2020 and was re-elected. She is currently running unopposed. Fiedler has established herself as a leader on education in the district, Philadelphia at large, and the state. She has led priority legislation such as the Pennsylvania-wide push for Fair Work Week and worked with our movement to build public pressure to support fair school funding. She’s assembled an effective legislative staff that works tirelessly to meet the direct needs of constituents. She’s been a leader in the response to COVID and collaborated with Reclaim on canvassing for vaccine access. The Steering Committee wholeheartedly recommends that members vote to endorse her for a third time.
Note to members: Reclaim Steering Committee member Adams Rackes is Fiedler’s spouse.
House District 188
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE RICK KRAJEWSKI
Rick Krajewski, former Reclaim Philadelphia Mass Liberation organizer, has gone above and beyond in his district. He’s hosted porch town halls, organized canvasses, and assembled an effective legislative staff to meet the needs of his constituents. His office redirected almost $4 million in state grant money back into the district to invest in infrastructure and programs towards gun violence prevention, green spaces, community economic development, and arts and culture. Krajewski and his team have introduced 15 pieces of legislation that would protect homeowners and renters from foreclosure and eviction, safeguard our environment from the dangers of fracking, and provide rights for young people impacted by our justice system. There are two challengers to Krajewski, but neither of them filled out Reclaim’s questionnaire. In his first term Rick Krajewski has been a quintessential movement leader in office and we are excited to see what our community will be able to achieve with him in a second term.
Note to members: Reclaim Steering Committee member Tess Kerins is Krajewski’s campaign manager and Steering Committee member Tammer Ibrahim is the campaign’s Chair.
House District 194
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE CHRIS RABB
Note! This endorsement recommendation has changed due to redistricting. Check out the addendum to this recommendation here
Chris Rabb is a key leader in the progressive movement. First elected in 2016, and endorsed by Reclaim’s membership in 2018 and 2020, he is the incumbent representative in House District 200. He’s been opposed by the establishment every cycle and has had a competitive election each time. Meanwhile, in House District 194, Pam DeLissio is the incumbent. DeLissio has not been aligned with Reclaim priorities, and did not return our questionnaire and is thus ineligible for our endorsement. Nurse Tarik Khan announced a challenge to DeLissio last year, with a progressive platform and lots of excitement. He has run a strong challenge with impressive fundraising and endorsements and, if the circumstances of the race were different, the Steering Committee would likely be recommending Khan to membership for endorsement.
However, in a surprising shift, redistricting maps proposed in late 2021 placed Rabb, DeLissio, and Khan all in the same district, also to be called District 194. This change was unfortunate. Under different circumstances, the Steering Committee would likely have been able to recommend both Tarik Khan and Chris Rabb for endorsement. However, the Steering Committee sees clearly that Rabb has been a strong progessive leader in Harrisburg who has concretely demonstrated his commitment to Reclaim Philadelphia’s priority issues. Progressives must align behind him in what will be a difficult incumbent-vs-incumbent race, and the Steering Committee strongly recommends that members vote to endorse Rabb for re-election.
House District 182
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE BEN WAXMAN
Last year, incumbent Brian Sims announced that he would not be running for re-election for State Representative and instead would be running for Lieutenant Governor. Since then, multiple candidates have thrown their hat in the ring and applied for Reclaim Philadelphia’s endorsement. Sims and a “who’s who'' of the Democratic establishment, including Comcast lobbyist and Chairman of the Philadelphia Democratic Party Bob Brady, have endorsed Deja Alvarez in her bid for Representative. Reclaim declined to endorse Alvarez in her previous run for Council because of her views in support of increasing police power and questionable political alignments. Jon Lovitz is the least aligned with Reclaim, clearly putting his faith in markets, police, and public-private partnerships in his questionnaire responses. Will Gross is a small business owner in Queen Village and committee person in the Second Ward, who expressed support for progressive politics in his questionnaire.
The Steering Committee believes the best candidate in this race is Ben Waxman. Waxman, a Reclaim member, ran against Sims in 2016, and is the only candidate with a longstanding and demonstrated history of fighting for unions and against mass incarceration. With previous work experience in Harrisburg, he is likely to hit the ground running. Over the past few years, he has used that experience to support Reclaim Philadelphia candidates like Elizabeth Fiedler and Rick Krajewski. He served as communications director for District Attorney Krasner; his demonstrated support for criminal justice reform is critical in a Philadelphia House delegation in which such support remains lamentably rare among white members. His strong relationships and communications work with public sector unions coincide with his vigorous advocacy for public investment. For all these reasons and for his longstanding commitment to progressive organizing, the Steering Committee recommends that members vote to endorse Ben Waxman.
House District 201
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE ANDRE CARROLL
Stephen Kinsey first was elected to office in 2013. Kinsey was formerly the Chief of Staff for the representative who preceded him. One of the only bills Kinsey has proposed recently was HB642, which would disqualify an incarcerated individual from medical parole or early release based on the nature of the crime they committed. This bill makes it so that elderly folks and people who are seriously ill would have to stay in prison based on the nature of their conviction. Furthermore, although he withdrew support under pressure, Kinsey was one of the initial sponsors of HB1587, which would establish new mandatory minimum sentences. These bills do not align with our community values; if they had passed, we would have seen thousands more people locked up. Kinsey did not return our questionnaire and is thus ineligible for our endorsement.
Andre Carroll is a Reclaim member, former campaign worker for Isaiah Thomas, and former campaign manager for Pastor Nicolas O’Rourke, whose campaign for City Council Reclaim endorsed in 2019. Carroll currently serves on the Board of the Brothahood Foundation, an organization that provides support for juveniles facing adult charges. The clearest contrast between these candidates is shown in their stances on criminal justice reform. Kinsey has proposed specific legislation to keep people incarcerated, making no attempt to reform our broken system. Carroll has shown a deep interest in helping juveniles navigate a system designed to keep them in it. We have a real opportunity to elect an aligned young Black progressive to the State House, which is why the Steering Committee recommends that our members vote to endorse Andre Carroll.
Note to members: Reclaim Steering Committee member Steph Drain is Carroll’s campaign manager.
Senate District 8
Steering Committee Recommendation: ENDORSE PAUL PRESCOD
Anthony Williams was first elected to office in 1989 as a state representative, leaving his former career as an executive for PepsiCo. A decade later, he was elevated to the Senate to succeed his father, Hardy Williams. In that race, his father pretended to collect signatures to get on the ballot to ensure his son was unopposed; to this day, the younger Williams has never had a primary challenge. As a senator, he’s best known for ushering in school privatization, fighting for school vouchers, and opposing the soda tax. He ran unsuccessfully for Mayor twice, in campaigns fueled by millions of dollars from education privatizers, particularly Pennsylvania's largest political spender and mega-GOP-funder Jeffrey Yass. Williams and his network continue to be funded by these interests. Williams did not return our questionnaire and is thus ineligible for our endorsement.
Paul Prescod is a member of and longtime organizer with both the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Prescod and his team have turned what could have been a longshot underdog campaign into a very serious challenge with some impressive organizing. The campaign raised over $135,000 in 2021 from more than 800 individual donors, regularly have 20-50 canvassers per weekend, and have earned a slew of notable endorsements including AFSCME District Council 33, the Postal Workers Union, Teamsters 623, Teamsters BMWED, the Temple Association of University Professionals, and DSA. As a Senator, Prescod would be a clear voice and effective organizer for public schools, public investment, unions, and working-class people.
Reclaim Philadelphia has a substantial membership in Senate District 8, and this race is an exciting opportunity to shake Philadelphia politics away from a culture of corruption and self-dealing and to one of strong public investment for working people. The Steering Committee enthusiastically recommends that members vote to endorse Paul Prescod.
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Reclaim Philadelphia’s Steering Committee is a leadership team directly elected by Reclaim Philadelphia members to two-year terms. See the current membership at the bottom of this page. The next Steering Committee elections will be in summer 2022.