The Philadelphia Inquirer: A reform coalition is targeting Philly committee seats — and drawing party pushback
The Philadelphia Inquirer · May 17, 2026 · By Ximena Conde
The Inquirer covers Wards That Work, the coalition running more than 350 candidates for committeeperson, the lowest elected office in the city, and the pushback it drew. Ordinarily sleepy races suddenly had contested ballots and PAC-funded mailers boosting incumbents. "The party establishment is so desperate to cling to power here," said candidate Omeed Firouzi, pointing to "deceptive mailers that are paid for by these mysterious groups." The coalition launched in November with volunteers from Riverwards Area Democrats, Reclaim Philadelphia, Philadelphia DSA and the Philadelphia chapter of the Communist Party USA. The piece traces the open-wards effort back through 2018 and 2022, when Reclaim says more than 150 of its backed candidates won seats.