Should Philly politicians have to resign to campaign for new seats? Voters will get to weigh in — again | City Council roundup
If approved, the proposal would allow Philadelphia City Council members to run for state or federal offices without resigning.
For the third time in two decades, Philadelphia voters this May will have the opportunity to weigh in on a city rule requiring local elected officials to step down from their current jobs if they want to seek higher office.
Voters rejected City Council’s first two attempts to get rid of the resign-to-run rule, which requires a ballot measure because it is part of the city’s Home Rule Charter.
» READ MORE: Philly City Council is advancing legislation to let members keep their jobs while running for Congress
The latest proposal, which Council approved Thursday in a 15-1 vote, will go before the voters during the May 19 primary election. Councilmember Isaiah Thomas, who authored the measure, is hopeful it will be approved because his proposal is more limited than Council’s previous attempts.
“Reforming the resign-to-run rule for local elected officials is a critical first step towards ensuring Philadelphians have the best representation possible at all levels of government,” Thomas said in a statement.
» READ MORE: What is Philly’s resign-to-run rule?
Rather than eliminating the resign-to-run rule, Thomas’ proposal would amend it to allow only Council members to run for state or federal offices without resigning. (Council members would still have to step down if they wanted to run for mayor, and mayors would still have to resign to seek any other office.)
What was this week’s highlight?
Why stop there? Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr. cast the only vote against Thomas’ proposal.
He said afterward that he believes a measure to alter the resign-to-run rule should be paired with another charter amendment: one that would impose term limits for Council members.
“I do believe that we should be limited as elected officials,” said Young, a first-term Council member representing North Philadelphia and parts of Center City. “I do think that as a public office, we shouldn’t do these jobs forever.”
Young’s position echoes that of the Committee of Seventy, Philadelphia’s business-backed good-government group. Committee of Seventy CEO Lauren Cristella told Council last year that pairing a resign-to-run change with term limits would provide “comprehensive, not piecemeal, reform.”
The group proposed limiting Council members to three four-year terms. Young said he is open to negotiating about what the right number of terms should be.
What else happened?
Never read the comments: Is serving on City Council a “real job”?
Not according to a recent Instagram comment from Young, whose taxpayer-funded salary is about $166,000 per year.
On Wednesday, Instagram user Alan Fisher criticized the lawmaker in a comment left on an Inquirer video about a controversial zoning bill that Young had authored.
“Jay Young is a joke of a councilperson and I cannot wait till he’s replaced,” wrote Fisher, who posts about urbanism issues and has thousands of followers across his social media accounts.
Young replied: “me too so I can get a real job.”
After Council ended Thursday, Young said the comment was not an indication of his political future.
“I’m joking,” he told reporters. “The guy called me a joke, and I made a joke.”
The backstory: Young, who represents the North Philadelphia-based 5th District, had proposed a zoning bill to prevent the former Hahnemann University Hospital site on North Broad Street from being redeveloped into housing. Young said he was hoping to see the site return to being an employment hub.
But instead, his efforts to change the area’s zoning led to a rush of housing permit applications from developers hoping to beat him to the punch as his proposal made its way through the legislative process. He has since pressed pause on the bill, and The Inquirer video laid out how the saga had unfolded.
» READ MORE: City Council bill would ban housing from former Hahnemann University Hospital area
In a Council speech Thursday, Young appeared to walk back his comment, although he did not directly mention the episode.
“People say a lot of vile stuff about us. It seems like we’re not allowed to have a sense of humor about it,” Young said. “But I want my constituents to know that in the 5th Council District, we are fighting each and every day to improve their lives.”
The Instagram comment was not the first time Young has provided curious commentary about his political future.
Late last year, when The Inquirer asked if he planned to run for reelection in 2027, Young said: “It’s not up to me to make that decision. … It’s up to the people of the 5th District.”
Usually, the people’s will is discerned through elections. Young, who has already drawn a potential opponent in next year’s race, said he will instead take the pulse of the 5th District by reaching out to people before deciding whether to seek a second four-year term.
At the time, Young seemed to think being a member of Council was a real job.
“I like doing my job,” he said last year.
Quote of the day
Temple student honored: Council on Thursday recognized Jerome Richardson, a Temple University senior who was arrested by federal authorities on charges connected to a January protest in his native St. Paul, Minn.
During the surge in immigration enforcement activities and civil unrest in the Twin Cities this winter, protesters interrupted a service at a church whose pastor is also a federal immigration officer.
» READ MORE: Temple student arrested for anti-ICE protest at Minnesota church in case involving journalist Don Lemon
The fallout from the demonstration led to the controversial arrest of former CNN anchor Don Lemon, who live-streamed the event and said he was covering it as a journalist. Richardson said in a video he assisted Lemon “by helping with logistics and connecting him with local contacts” and posted a text-message exchange in which Lemon said Richardson could “produce” for him.
Richardson turned himself in to federal authorities in Philadelphia earlier this month. His case is pending, along with those of Lemon and other defendants.
“Whenever journalists are under attack, we are all under attack,” Richardson said in a speech to Council.
Staff writers Anna Orso, Jake Blumgart, and Ryan W. Briggs contributed to this article.