Vote now on the final round of Reclaim’s endorsements for the May 16 2023 Primary
Reclaim Philadelphia’s Steering Committee announces its final recommendations for endorsement for the May 16 Primary Election. Members can vote here now on these endorsements. Candidates endorsed by member vote will join the endorsements we have already made for Mayor and City Council.
Vote now in the final round of endorsements!
For the City Council Democratic Primary in Council District 7, the Steering Committee recommends our members endorse Andrés Celin.
You can read the questionnaires of both candidates in the 7th District here.
When we announced our second round of primary election recommendations in February we left open the possibility of endorsing in additional districts. On that endorsement ballot, dozens of members said they wanted Reclaim to endorse Celin. Since then, Reclaim leaders have continued to hear vocal support for Celin from our members, particularly the leaders and members of our Riverwards neighborhood group and health caucus.
Celin and his campaign team have built a powerful campaign that has a clear path to victory, evidenced by a vigorous canvassing effort and the fact that his campaign out fundraised his opponents in all the reporting cycles so far
Andrés Celin comes from a social work background and has worked as a youth organizer for Youth United for Change. Celin makes clear in his questionnaire responses that he shares our political analysis and our vision for systemic change. He’s earned the support of our allied movement organizations and unions.
Reclaim’s long-term vision for change requires elected leaders not only who are ideologically interested in systemic change, but also have the organizing experience needed to win. Andrés Celin’s campaign offers our city yet another chance this election cycle to move our shared vision for an equitable and just city forward. Reclaim’s Steering Committee is excited to recommend Andrés Celin for endorsement!
Vote now in the final round of endorsements!
Reclaim Philadelphia’s Steering Committee recommends our members vote to endorse the following ten candidates for the Court of Common Pleas:
Natasha Taylor-Smith
Caroline Turner
Ken Joel
Tamika Washington
Samantha Williams
Will Braveman
Wade Albert
Jessica Brown
Kay Yu
John Padova
For Municipal Court, Steering Committee
recommends members vote to endorse:
Caroline Turner*
(*judges can run for Common Pleas and Municipal Court on the same ballot)
Since 2017, Reclaim Philadelphia has made endorsements for judicial candidates running for seats on the Philadelphia Courts.
Our communities deserve judges who understand public safety isn’t something we achieve by locking up enough people in cages. Judges are critical fixtures of the prison industrial complex, and in that system they hold a tremendous amount of power over our lives and our communities. This election cycle we have the chance to elect judges who profess our shared values.
As we’ve seen with the recent Pennsylvania school funding court case and the dismissal of the FOP lawsuit against Driving Equality legislation, judges can have an outsized impact on the horizon of what’s legally possible. This goes from the individual level in terms of reducing sentences to the systemic in terms of case law.
Through seeking input from candidates, allied Black & brown led mass liberation organizations, legal organizations and our members, Reclaim’s Steering Committee has developed a slate of 10 Common Pleas judge candidates. We recommend these candidates for endorsement because we believe they will have the most positive impact on an institution that enables mass incarceration — an institution derived from forces designed to uphold chattel slavery and suppress organized labor. We must also continue to understand public safety in terms of housing, jobs, healthcare, food, and community.
This slate of judicial candidates includes public defenders, labor lawyers, and champions of voting and housing justice in the courts. The majority women slate reflects the diversity of our city and includes only candidates “recommended” or “highly recommended” by the Philadelphia Bar Association.
Vote now in the final round of endorsements!
Reclaim Philadelphia’s endorsements are decided by members like you. 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. If you cannot afford to pay monthly dues at this time, you can become a member by emailing info@reclaimphiladelphia.org.
Membership voting continues from Wednesday April 12, to Wednesday April 19, 2023.
In advance of candidate endorsements, Reclaim’s Steering Committee leads a process of gathering information and viewpoints from candidates, Reclaim staff members and other advocates, and aligned wards, labor unions, and organizations. Based on this research while considering both the values of candidates and our confidence in their ability to drive change once in office, the Steering Committee makes recommendations to membership.
Reclaim Philadelphia’s Steering Committee is a leadership team directly elected by Reclaim Philadelphia members to two-year terms. The current Steering Committee was elected by members in the Summer of 2022 and is listed at the bottom of our Leadership page..