Fall 2026 Endorsements
Dear South Philly Neighbor,
The Fall 2026 midterm election is coming up on November 3rd, and in this moment of frustration over the immense cruelty and corruption of the Trump administration, your voice is as important as ever in building a city and a country in which all our neighbors have the resources we need to thrive.
All of us deserve homes that are safe and healthy, jobs that give us dignity and fair pay for our work, resourced schools where our children can learn and grow, and access to high-quality medical care that we can afford. But rather than invest in our people and communities, the federal government has slashed services, including nearly a trillion dollars to Medicaid—and squandered these crucial dollars on tax cuts for the richest 1%, war and violence abroad, and supercharging ICE’s budget to terrorize our communities. And here in South Philly, we’ve seen how powerful our community is when all of us come together. Over the past few years, the Democratic First Ward has changed the course of politics by electing leaders like Elizabeth Fiedler, Nikil Saval, and Kendra Brooks, who are smart, caring, and dedicated to building a world that works for all of us. We refuse to let apathy and fatigue take over.
Last spring, our Ward showed up. We had one of the highest voter turnout rates in the city. This means that our neighbors here in the First Ward were crucial in helping elect Chris Rabb as our Democratic candidate for Congress against a massive effort by the establishment to keep him down.
This fall, we can’t lose steam. Our neighbors deserve leaders like Chris Rabb fighting for them in D.C. and Elizabeth Fiedler fighting for them in Harrisburg. And Democratic leadership of our state is crucial in making a better world possible. When South Philly shows up, our whole country wins.
Here are the races and questions you will see on your ballot for the Fall 2026 midterm election, and the First Ward’s endorsements in these contests:
Representative in Congress, 3rd District: Chris Rabb
Chris Rabb is a progressive state representative from Mt. Airy with a track record as an unflinching fighter for economic justice, racial justice, and the environment. Rabb has been transparent and clear about his moral compass, opposing ICE, weapons sales to Israel, and corporate and billionaire PAC money in politics. His work and his stances align with what we have heard from so many conversations with our neighbors here in South Philly.
Rabb’s victory in the primary shows what’s possible when neighbors come together and refuse to accept politics as usual. As families struggle with costs and Trump slashes services to line the pockets of his cronies, Rabb will bring a constituent-powered voice to Congress, devoted to real action on healthcare, housing, cost of living, climate, workers, and peace.
Representative in the General Assembly, 184th District: Elizabeth Fiedler
Since 2018, Representative Elizabeth Fiedler has been our neighborhood’s champion in Harrisburg, winning hundreds of millions in new funding for Philadelphia’s public schools, creating green energy jobs and taxpayer savings with her Solar for Schools program, and securing state funding for local parks, rec centers, and community organizations. Last year, she was named chair of the powerful Energy Committee, where she has advanced legislation to lower utility bills, boost renewable energy, and make AI companies pay their fair share for electricity.
Fiedler’s journey shows clearly that people-power changes who gets heard in Harrisburg. Once an underdog, she is now a senior legislator setting an agenda that centers the voices of working families in determining Pennsylvania’s future.
Governor and Lieutenant Governor: Josh Shapiro and Austin Davis
For our elected representatives at every level of government to work toward the flourishing Pennsylvania that we all deserve, we need strong democratic leadership from our state’s highest office. Josh Shapiro and Austin Davis have fought back against Trump’s attacks on Pennsylvania in court, and they have firmly held the line on abortion rights, public school funding, and SEPTA funding in the face of Republican attacks on our city and rights.
Shapiro has shown that he is responsive to Pennsylvanians’ concerns. He’s put stronger guardrails on data centers to help protect us from higher energy bills. He’s upheld crucial protections for LGBTQ Pennsylvanians and increased assistance for seniors through an expansion to the state’s Property Tax/Rent Rebate program. And this year, he announced Pennsylvania’s first-ever Housing Action Plan to lower costs and increase housing supply.
On the Proposed Charter Change (Ballot) Questions
Question 1: Giving contracting preferences to small businesses and expanding them for local businesses for City-funded projects. WARD RECOMMENDATION: NONE. This measure would change the contract procedure for small businesses, but criteria to define “small businesses” and “local businesses” remain ambiguous, despite our research.
Question 2: Making Creative Philadelphia a formal part of Philadelphia City Government. WARD RECOMMENDATION: YES! With the recent loss of the University of the Arts and the Academy of Natural Sciences, formalizing Creative Philadelphia as part of the City sends a message that our arts and cultural institutions are important to our communities and deserve attention and investment.
The election on November 3rd will have a huge impact on the future of our country and the lives of our neighbors. If you have questions, please reach out to us as your Committee People. Remember that a powerful city is a city that votes!
Sincerely,
Your elected Committee People of the Democratic First Ward: Natasha, Nick, Sula, Doug, Kathleen, Steve, Stef, Erin, Meghan, Emilene, Clare, Adams, Lori, Mary Kate, Chelsea, Eddie, Caleb, Kelsey, Dave, Leigh, Phil, Beth, Eliza, Donna, Bri, Leslie, Caitlin, Tamesh, Kaycee, Sam, Emiliano, Francisco, Dom, Gabrielle, Maria, Ryan, Dana, Pallavi, Rose, and Omercan.