New TV ads in Philly mayor’s race focus on hiring more police and feature a candidate’s son

Philadelphia mayoral candidate Derek Green is launching a TV ad campaign this week, making him the sixth contender to have a presence on the airwaves in a race that has already seen more than $8.3 million in spending on TV.

Green, a former prosecutor and City Council member whose campaign has struggled to gain traction thus far, is seeking to boost his profile by running two new ads starting Wednesday. One focuses on public safety, with Green promising to “put more police on the streets, hire more prosecutors, and create real consequences again.”

The other features Green with his son, Julian, who is on the autism spectrum. Green has frequently spoken about his fears that Julian’s communications difficulties could lead to misunderstandings if he interacts with police, a concern he uses to illustrate his commitment to pursuing police reforms and cracking down on crime.

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“It’s a fear when you know your son can’t speak up for himself,” Green says in the ad. “The streets are dangerous, and sometimes even the best police officers can misinterpret things. So Julian goes to school with a note in his backpack explaining he’s autistic.”

The onslaught of TV ads in Philadelphia’s mayoral election is likely to intensify as the May 16 primary approaches. Thanks to Philadelphia’s overwhelmingly Democratic electorate, the winner of the party’s nomination is all but guaranteed to win in November.

Green, one of 11 Democrats in the race, has so far struggled to make an impression as other candidates have won major endorsements or spent big on advertising early. But a successful TV campaign could change things for Green, who is emphasizing his plans to help small businesses and get tough on crime.

Green’s campaign plans to stay on TV for a seven-week run through election day. So far it has committed about $63,000 for the initial week.

Green has a ways to go to catch to the level of visibility that some of his rivals have created for themselves. Former Councilmember Allan Domb, a real estate magnate who has given his own campaign at least $5 million, has dominated the TV ad race with more than $4.8 million in spending.

Former Councilmember Cherelle Parker began running her own ads three weeks ago, and this week she got a boost from a $229,000 ad buy from Philadelphians for our Future PAC, an independent expenditure campaign, or “super PAC,” that was created to aid her candidacy.

Candidates’ campaigns are subject to the city’s limits on donations, which for the mayor’s race will be $6,200 for individual contributors and $25,200 from political action committees. Super PACs, however, can take in donations in unlimited amounts but are prohibited from coordinating with candidates.

The ad by the pro-Parker super PAC highlights her public safety plan, which includes fixing streetlights, filling vacancies in the 911 call center, and hiring 300 more police officers.

“Some candidates for mayor talk about public safety out of both sides of their mouth, but Cherelle Parker has her priorities straight,” a narrator says in the ad. “Cherelle Parker knows that making Philly safer should be our next mayor’s top priority.”

It is the third super PAC to spend money on TV in the race. The others are Fighting Together for Philadelphia, which recently began airing ads backing former Councilmember Helen Gym, and For a Better Philadelphia, which has spent more than $1 million boosting grocer and first-time candidate Jeff Brown.

Staff writers Chris Brennan and Anna Orso contributed to this article.