Philadelphia Republicans in danger of being wiped out on City Council

Republicans in Philadelphia are in real danger on Tuesday of losing their representation on the City Council, fighting to hang on to two seats set aside for the opposition party but facing a tough challenge by a far-left splinter party.

Four years ago, a Working Families Party candidate took a seat from Philadelphia Republicans, winning one of two at-large council seats reserved for the minority party, which in the past had gone to Republicans given the Democratic stronghold over the city.

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This year, there are seven at-large City Council seats up for election. Five are reserved for the “majority” party, per the city’s charter, which has gone to Democratic candidates for decades. The two remaining are for the minority party, which means either Republican candidates or Working Families Party candidates will win the spots. Working Families Party has put up two extremely well-funded candidates this year, and the party wants both traditionally held GOP seats.

Another problematic development is that Brian O’Neill, the only Republican in a district seat who has 43 years of service under his belt, is facing a challenger with deep pockets who may put O’Neill, the son of a police officer, out of commission.

If all three seats go to challengers, Republicans in the deep-blue Philadelphia City Council will be left with City Commissioner Seth Bluestein as the last Republican standing in City Hall. 

Sam Katz, a three-time mayoral candidate and former Republican, likened Election Day to “an existential test” for the party and said it’s “facing losing its presence in Philadelphia.”

Republicans have watched their power and influence steadily fade in the urban city, the country’s sixth most populous.

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The party has relied on Philadelphia’s Home Rule Charter to keep its voice from disappearing altogether, but it may not be enough this year. The 72-year-old document includes a resign-to-run rule for elected officials, prohibits city workers from working on political campaigns, and establishes recall procedures. It also mandates voting rules that require party diversity on the City Council.

Jim Hasher, one of the Republicans seeking an at-large seat, told the National Review that if he, O’Neill, and Drew Murray, the other Republican running for an at-large seat, all lose, the consequences could be catastrophic.

“I really believe we will be wiped out as an organization,” said Hasher, who describes himself as a centrist. “I don’t think we recover from this.”

Philadelphia’s Republican Party leadership has admitted it underestimated the Working Families Party in 2019, something it has vowed not to repeat. 

The Atlantic once called the Working Families Party “the pugnacious, relentless progressive party that wants to remake America,” adding that it has “pushed the political debate to the left in the states where it’s already active” and is “ready to take that fight nationwide.”

In Philadelphia, that means tying each Republican contender to former President Donald Trump. He is the top GOP candidate hoping to secure the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

But in Philadelphia, in order to have a shot at winning, Republicans have had to work overtime to distance themselves from Trump.

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Hasher said he’s purposely avoided campaigning as a partisan politician and is backed by the Building and Construction Trades Council, a politically powerful coalition of unions that’s led mostly by Democrats. 

Murray, a former Democrat who switched parties in 2018, is a Republican ward leader who previously led the Philadelphia Crosstown Coalition. He ran unsuccessfully for City Council twice as a Republican. Most recently, he hosted his Democratic-heavy Logan Square neighborhood’s annual Halloween event. Dressed as Wolverine, he spent time explaining to his neighbors that he was a friendly Republican “who can really work with both sides of the aisle.”