A map of Pennsylvania’s 2nd Congressional District.[/caption] by Stan Cutler National political conventions are culture capsules. The delegates are citizens who have been given tickets to attend a ceremony, a celebration of and by people who are alike in their political identity. The cameras point to the podium, to the candidates and people delivering speeches. But who are those delegates? Who represents us at these affairs? Last week, Republicans nationwide watched their convention in Cleveland, saw their delegates as actors in an elaborately staged advertisement for the party brand and …
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by Stan Cutler
National political conventions are culture capsules. The delegates are citizens who have been given tickets to attend a ceremony, a celebration of and by people who are alike in their political identity. The cameras point to the podium, to the candidates and people delivering speeches. But who are those delegates? Who represents us at these affairs?
Last week, Republicans nationwide watched their convention in Cleveland, saw their delegates as actors in an elaborately staged advertisement for the party brand and its product: The Nominee. This week, Democrats are putting on their own show. This article is about the people from around here who got tickets to play their parts at the DNC extravaganza.
We live and vote in Pennsylvania’s 2nd Congressional District. Our delegates represent a population of 646,355 that is overwhelmingly Democratic. In 2012, of the 356,000 votes cast for our Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, 89 percent, 318,000, were for Chaka Fattah.
According to the Cook Partisan Voting Index, of the 435 Congressional Districts in the USA, ours can be expected to deliver more Democratic votes in elections than 432 others, more than any district outside the state of New York. We are big dogs in the Democratic Party kennel. Without high turnout from our District and the ones near us, Pennsylvania’s electoral votes would go to Republican Presidential Nominees.
Like every other Ddistrict, our boundaries were drawn by our State legislators on the basis of 2010 Census data, computer analysis, and the desire of our incumbent U.S. Congressmen to ensure their re-elections. Almost every Congressional District in the country is now dominated by voters who are decidedly Republican or decidedly Democratic. Because the Republicans won most of the state legislatures in the off-year 2010 election, they drew boundaries around more safe Republican districts than a strict apportionment by population would otherwise allow. This explains why the US House of Representatives is dominated by Republicans, even though there were 3 million more votes cast nationally for Democrats than for Republicans in the 2010 election.
On a map, the boundaries of the PA 2nd surround a majority of West Philadelphia including University City and parts of Center City. The District reaches northward across East Falls, Strawberry Mansion, Narbeth, Merion Station, Ardmore, Bala Cynwyd, Germantown, West Mount Airy, Northwest Philadelphia, Roxborough, Gladwyne, and parts of Bryn Mawr.
At the Democratic Convention now underway at the Wells Fargo Center, there are 4,764 delegates. 2,383 (a majority) of the votes are required to select a nominee for President.
Our District is represented by 14 delegates and 1 alternate. There were 28 possible delegates listed on our April 26 ballot, 14 for Clinton, 14 for Sanders. Based on the final vote count, 10 of those finally selected are pledged to Clinton, 4 to Sanders. According to party delegate selection rules (the sausage recipe) half the delegation must be female. Also, the delegation must reflect the racial balance in the District as a whole. The final selection is as follows:
Agre, Louis (White male) – Pledged to Sanders; attorney, age 61, 21st Ward Leader (Roxborough), represents the International Union of Operating Engineers (heavy equipment operators) Local 542
Allen-White, Nicole (African American female) – Pledged to Clinton, attorney, age 28, Philadelphia Museum Director of Government and External Affairs
Bass, Cindy (African American female) – Pledged to Clinton, age 49, Philadelphia City Councilwoman in the 8th District (including Chestnut Hill)
Cohen, Sherrie (White female) – Pledged to Sanders, attorney, former member of City Council, grass roots activist for progressive causes
Daley, Mary Jo (White female) – Pledged to Clinton, age 66, Representative to the Pennsylvania Legislature from the 148th District, served 10 years as Narberth Borough Council President
Gilmore, Katherine (African American female) – Pledged to Clinton, age 33, Staff Director at City Council of Philadelphia, reporting to Majority Whip Blondell Reynolds Brown
Hughes, Vincent (African American male) – Pledged to Clinton, age 59, State Senator, Democratic Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, formerly chaired Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus
Jordan, Jerry (African American male) – Pledged to Clinton, age 62, President of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
Kaboud, Yasmeen (female, father Arab, mother white American) – Pledged to Sanders, age 20, Penn student from Las Vegas, majoring in Political Science and History
Kenyatta, Malcolm (African American male) - Member Engagement Coordinator at the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, LGBT activist, North Philly advocate
Kessler, Dan (White male) – Pledged to Clinton, age 26, youngest “Ready for Hillary” National Finance Committee member, real estate investment associate for Brandywine Realty Trust
Leopold, William (White male) – Pledged to Clinton, age about 65, Psychiatric Social Worker in Greater Philadelphia Health Action, long-time Democratic Party activist from Narberth
Reynolds-Brown, Blondell (African American female) – Pledged to Clinton, age about 55, Majority Whip of Philadelphia City Council serving her fifth term
Soysal, Hamdi (White male) – Pledged to Sanders, age 24, 2016 Wharton grad in (Finance, Management), Boston-born, raised in Turkey, got out West Philly vote for Sanders