Who would have thought that a kid who shined shoes, delivered newspapers, washed dishes, and mopped up office buildings to help his family make ends meet would one day build a business from the ground up? His humble beginnings taught him the value of giving back and helping others. In fact, while he was on City Council, he donated his entire Council salary to help a new generation of kids achieve their dreams.
Meet Allan Domb, a business, community, and government leader running in the May 16th Democratic primary to serve as Philadelphia’s 100th Mayor.
Allan is a successful businessman today, but he grew up modestly, learning the value of hard work at an early age. At the age of five, he was already earning money shining shoes. Growing up, Allan delivered newspapers and washed dishes. In high school, he mopped floors after wrestling practice. During college, he earned a degree while working full-time and taking night classes. He later took real estate classes at Temple University and started his own real estate business from the ground up. Allan’s success not only created jobs for his fellow Philadelphians but it led to him investing in local entrepreneurs.
In 2015, Allan ran for Philadelphia City Council to serve his community. During nearly seven years in office, Allan provided wage tax refunds to 60,000 lower-income households, protected homeowners from predatory scams, provided loans to neighborhood businesses to create and grow jobs, and held the government accountable to ensure that anti-violence grants went to programs that keep our communities safe.
Allan repeatedly pushed to overhaul the City’s tax structure, which is routinely cited as a primary barrier to growing the local economy. Philadelphia is the only big city in the country to double-tax businesses and has some of the highest wage taxes in the nation. Allan proposed tax reform in 2021 that received wide support from business and community groups. West Philadelphia non-profit, the Enterprise Center, said Allan’s bill would “…alleviate the burden that many Black and brown-owned businesses face in Philadelphia.”
Allan led the charge in passing legislation to expand the tax refund reimbursement rate for low-wage earners, putting hundreds of thousands of dollars back into the pockets of more than 60,000 Philadelphia households. His 2019 bill was supported by a wide coalition, including Community Legal Services, Campaign for Working Families, Benefits Data Trust, the Reinvestment Fund, and Ceiba. The Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial Board praised Allan’s bill as a “no-brainer” that “…can make a real difference to families.”
Last November, Allan announced his run for Mayor, saying he sees with his own eyes that Philadelphia is in crisis. As he says, ”We have a public safety crisis, a poverty crisis, an affordable housing crisis, and an education crisis. But most importantly, the city faces a crisis of leadership.”
Allan has a comprehensive public safety plan that includes declaring a crime emergency on Day 1, cracking down on illegal guns, reducing hate crimes, and locking up the most violent offenders.
Allan will use his experience to grow our economy with a goal of adding 100,000 jobs, adding 100,000 residents (both of which increase our tax base), and bringing 100,000 people out of poverty over the next decade. As Mayor, he would focus on inclusive growth policies designed to create jobs in every neighborhood. While other candidates talk about getting people more jobs, he is focused on helping people find careers and become entrepreneurs, which is the only real way to build generational wealth.
Allan donated his entire Council salary to city schools and education programs and wants to rethink how the city approaches public schools. He would refocus Philadelphia’s school system around students and parents and require schools to teach financial literacy, tech, and entrepreneurship, as well as allow high school students to work one day a week for credit and gain valuable work experience.
Allan’s experience working in the private sector and government means he would be a different kind of Mayor. He did not grow up in politics, where what matters most is who “wins” and who “loses.” He believes that we are better by working together and, as he did in his business and on City Council, he will be focused on results, not ideology. He has repeatedly shown a willingness to work with anyone and forgo credit. He plans to work closely with anyone and everyone committed to addressing the challenges Philadelphia faces. And Allan Domb will be ready on Day 1 of his administration—not bad for a kid who shined shoes to help his family make ends meet back in the day.
