Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard

📉 The warning sign in Pa. Democrats’ big wins | Morning Newsletter

And Philly’s unprecedented amount of cash.

A sign reminding people to vote hanging across from Philadelphia City Hall earlier this month.
A sign reminding people to vote hanging across from Philadelphia City Hall earlier this month.Read moreDavid Maialetti / Staff Photographer

    The Morning Newsletter

    Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

Expect clear and sunny skies. Temperatures will reach the high 40s.

Pennsylvania Democrats may have swept the midterms and defied political history, but their victory obscured something that could ring alarm bells: Philly’s turnout plummeted.

That could be an issue for the party, because about 80% of Philadelphians vote Democratic.

Our lead story explores what this could mean for the city’s future role in statewide races.

If you see this 🔑 in today’s newsletter, that means we’re highlighting our exclusive journalism. You need to be a subscriber to read these stories.

— Taylor Allen (@TayImanAllen, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

Philly’s overall voter turnout dropped the most out of any county in the state.

Necessary context: Turnout in midterm elections is always lower than presidential races. But this is the third consecutive election in which Philly’s share of the state’s vote declined.

An Inquirer analysis of the nearly final 2022 results and those from previous elections raise questions about the city’s influence and both parties’ ability to connect with Black and Latino voters.

  1. Philly’s vote count dropped 33%, more than the statewide average of 22%.

  2. Philadelphia’s share of the state’s total Democratic vote dropped from 20% in 2016 to 15% this year.

  3. Turnout dropped the most in Latino parts of the city. Black neighborhoods also saw a sharp decline.

Continue reading for an Inquirer analysis of what Philadelphia’s shifting turnout patterns could mean for Democrats’ power in Harrisburg.

Philadelphia is flush with cash.

The city projects it will finish this year with north of $500 million unspent out of $5.73 billion in projected revenues.

Reminder: Philadelphia nearly became the first major U.S. city to declare bankruptcy in the 1990s and has struggled to provide basic services for decades.

The cash influx is due to multiple factors, including unexpectedly high tax collections, a slow-spending approach to the $1.4 billion in federal aid Philly received from the American Rescue Plan, and difficulties filling positions amid a tight labor market.

The forces: City Council members have urged the administration to spend more aggressively amid the gun violence epidemic and the uneven economic recovery since 2020.

Meanwhile, the administration is cautious about dipping too far into reserves because of economic uncertainties in the coming year.

Keep reading to see which funds and programs will get a funding boost.

What you should know today

  1. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent a second bus of immigrants to Philadelphia. It arrived yesterday morning.

  2. Take a moment to read a reflection about the shooting at an LGBTQ night club in Colorado. The Inquirer’s Commentary and Ideas Editor shared how it has her rethinking what safe spaces mean.

  3. Children’s hospitals, including Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, are being threatened for treating trans youth. Lawmakers joined medical associations to call on the federal government to help.

  4. Ben Simmons is prepared for an emotionally charged and hostile return to Philly.🔑

  5. Three Philly-area restaurants made Esquire’s list of best new restaurants.

  6. Local coronavirus numbers: Here’s your daily look at the latest COVID-19 data.

🧠 Philly Trivia Time 🧠

After Ticketmaster’s Eras Tour pre-sale, Pennsylvania Attorney General and Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro invited disgruntled Taylor Swift fans who experienced problems to submit consumer complaints.

As of Monday morning, approximately how many complaints were filed?

A) 2,000

B) 2,500

C) 3,000

D) 1,500

Find out if you know the answer.

What we’re ...

💰Sharing: A workers’ guide to wage theft and what to do if it happens to you.

đź‘€ Watching: The possibility of a railroad strike and its potential impact on the U.S supply chain.

🎧 Listening: To Santigold’s new Tiny Desk Concert.

🧩 Unscramble the Anagram 🧩

Hint: A celebrity rooster

YGSGQUI

Think you know? Send your guess our way at morningnewsletter@inquirer.com. We’ll give a shout-out to a reader at random who answers correctly. Today’s shout-out goes to Tim Briggs, who correctly guessed Powelton Village as Monday’s answer.

Photo of the Day

And that’s your Tuesday. I’m off to bundle up for my morning run👟. Make the day count. I’ll be back tomorrow.