Philadelphia, PA Mayor: Former City Council member Cherelle Parker on Wednesday secured the backing of the deep-pocketed International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, which remains one of the city’s most powerful unions even after longtime leader John Dougherty's 2021 departure following his conviction for federal bribery charges. Local 98 finished late March with a massive $13.8 million on hand, and it has a history of spending big for its favorite candidates.
The endorsement comes as two wealthy candidates continue to enjoy a huge advertising edge ahead of the busy and unpredictable May 16 Democratic primary, where it takes just a plurality to win the all-important nomination in this dark blue city. The Philadelphia Inquirer says that former Council member Allan Domb, a self-funding real estate magnate nicknamed the “Condo King,” has deployed $5.6 million on ads through April 4. Grocer Jeff Brown has spent $1.6 million while For A Better Philadelphia, an allied super PAC that has not disclosed its donors, has thrown down another $1.1 million.
Former city Controller Rebecca Rhynhart, for her part, so far has outspent Parker’s campaign $456,000 to $274,000 on the air. Parker’s supporters at Philadelphians For Our Future, which is primarily funded by unions like the Laborers District Council, has deployed an additional $460,000 for her, though, in the leadup to the primary.
Another former councilmember, Helen Gym, has benefited from $583,000 from the American Federation of Teachers affiliate Fighting Together for Philadelphia, while her own campaign just begun a $128,000 opening ad campaign. Gyn’s inaugural ad features her pledging to issue “a state of emergency on crime, fix the 911 system, and put mental health first responders on the street.” Derek Green and Maria Quiñones Sánchez, who are also former council members, have deployed just $82,000 and $43,000, respectively, while state Rep. Amen Brown barely registers at $13,000.
Brown (who is not related to Jeff Brown) launched his campaign last year in an actual smoke-filled room in New York City accompanied by prominent developer Marty Burger, who has reportedly predicted the state representative would have $5 million in super PAC support, but not a dollar has been spent on his behalf. “I can’t talk about it,” Burger told the Inquirer at the end of March, “But you’ll see something happen.” We’re still waiting both to see if something will happen and for Brown to file the campaign fundraising reports that were due Tuesday.
The other notable contenders all met this deadline, though, so we know that Domb goes into the final weeks with a $1.7 million to $1.4 million cash-on-hand edge over Gym. Rhynhart and Parker had $854,000 to $607,000, respectively, compared to $409,000 for Brown; the grocer, though, has self-funded $1 million so far, so like Domb, he may be capable of throwing down more of his own money over the next few weeks. Quiñones Sánchez and Green, finally, had $321,000 and $304,000 in the bank.
We’ve seen all of one poll here, a mid-March FM3 survey for Jeff Brown's allies that showed him in front with 24%: Gym and Domb took 15% each to Rhynhart's 12%, with Parker and Quinones-Sanchez at 7% apiece and no one else breaking 2%.