If election day were tomorrow, would you be ready?
First of all, are you a registered voter? That’s critical. If you are not a registered voter, you cannot participate in the upcoming Tuesday, May 20, Primary Election that will take place across the state of Pennsylvania. Thus, the first order of business is to be a registered voter.
If you are age 18 or older, you can register to vote if you are a United States citizen. If you are not 18 yet but you will be 18 by May 20, you are allowed to go ahead and register to vote now. To register to vote takes all of 5 minutes or less, and there is no pain involved.
If you used to vote but you moved and have not voted since you moved to your new community, you need to re-register to vote with the address where you currently live.
If you got married and changed your name, you need to re-register to vote using your new name.
If you missed voting in the last four elections, you better check and see if your name is still on the voter rolls. It may have been removed, which also means you will need to re-register to vote.
Start by calling the City Commissioner’s office at 215- 686-3462 to see if you are still listed as a registered voter.
The next important thing is what offices are up for grabs in the upcoming Tuesday, May 20, 2025, Primary Election in Pennsylvania. Philadelphia voters will decide who the candidates will be to face off against each other in November for District Attorney. As of right now, we are only aware of two Democrats running against each other, the Democratic incumbent Larry Krasner and a retired Democratic Philadelphia Judge, Patrick Dugan. To date, no Republicans have announced they intend to run for District Attorney in Philadelphia this time around.
The office of City Controller is up for grabs, and to date, one person has tossed their hat in the ring for that office, and that’s the incumbent Democratic City Controller, Christine Brady. I’ll get back to the City controller’s office in a moment.
There are also several seats available for Judgeships in Philadelphia, and a list of local attorneys who will be vying for those seats. There are some ballot questions to consider, and that’s it.
The Spring Primary election, at first glance, looks easy-peezy, right? However, every election can have its twists and turns, and I expect this election will be no different. Bottom line. We need real voter engagement and interest, and the rest will take care of itself.
For now, let’s take a look at the responsibilities of the City Controller. In short, I would describe them as the watchdog over city department spending. Here’s the more official job description for the City Controller.
The City Controller is a popularly-elected City official and serves four-year terms, staggered from Mayor and Council elections, and is not subject to term limits. The City Controller is the Chief Auditor of the City of Philadelphia and the School District. The City Controller is independent of the Mayor and City Council and is charged with auditing their operations.
Under the Home Rule Charter, City Council ordi- nances, and state legislation, the City Controller has a number of responsibilities, in addition to auditing mu- nicipal government, including, but not limited to:
• Serve on the Board of Pensions and Retirement, which oversees the management of investments and the payment of benefits;
• Serve on the Philadelphia Gas Commission, which approves the Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) operating budget and short-term financing, and reviews and recommends PGW’s capital budget to City Council;
• Serve as a member of the Sinking Fund Commission, which oversees the investment of revenues paid into a sinking fund for payment of bond principal and interest and investment of the PGW Retirement Reserve;
• Serve as a member of the Bond Committee, which approves bond issues. The City Controller certifies the City of Philadelphia’s debt capacity and the capital nature and useful life of projects built with bond proceeds;
• Serve as auditor of the Philadelphia School District;
• Evaluate the reasonableness of the assumptions and estimates in the City’s Five Year Plan for PICA; and
• Investigate accusations of mismanagement and fraud by City agencies, employees, and/or contractors.
The Philadelphia City Controller must be honest efficient, effective, and fully accountable to city government, independent of the Mayor and city council. The City Controller conducts independent audits and analyses and provides objective information to city officials, the public, and other interested parties about the city’s financial affairs and ways to improve city operations and the use of public resources.
That’s your Civics 101 class for today. Next week, we will take a look at what the ballot questions are that we, as voters, will have to decide on.
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