When I think about “civics” and my civic duty, you can’t get more “civic” than voting. Voting is the key to the door. Voting is so critical. For people who don’t understand why it’s important to vote, I don’t understand why they don’t get it. Particularly if you’re over 20 and you don’t know why you should vote? Really? Come on now. We vote to get people in office who hopefully have views that reflect what we believe. If you believe education and school reform are critical, you want to vote for people who demonstrate those are issues important to them and are issues they will fight for. If you think health- care is something all Americans should have whether you are rich or not, and if you think having the right to vote is important you need to do your homework and vote for candidates who will fight to keep people’s right to vote intact.
Don’t be like some folk, always complaining about how the country is going down the drain and talking about all the things that are wrong with America, but you don’t vote. Please don’t be one of “those” people. Be a participant in the process of voting. That’s how you can make positive change. Sometimes things don’t happen overnight. Change doesn’t always come right away when we want it to, and things that are worth having are worth fighting for, so you don’t give up. You keep fighting. Keep voting to get good candidates in office, and ultimately, they will win.
Let me run through what offices are up for grabs in the Tuesday, May 18, 2021, Primary Election in Philadelphia again, just so you know:
People have to decide who they want for District Attorney. Do you want to keep Larry Krasner in office? He’s a Democrat. Or do you want someone new? Carlos Vega is a Democrat, and he’s running against the incumbent, Larry Krasner. On the Republican side, Chuck (Charles) Peruto is running for District Attorney. The office of City Controller is up for grabs, but it seems the only person who wants that gig is the person who already has the job, incumbent City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart, who is Democrat. She’s running unopposed.
Statewide, there’s only one seat available for Justice of the Supreme Court. One Democrat is running, Maria McLaughlin, and three Republicans Paula Patrick an African American Judge from Philadelphia, Judge Kevin Brobson, and Judge Patricia A. McCullough.
There’s only one seat available on PA’s Superior Court, and three Democrats are running, Judge Jill Beck, Judge Timika Lane (African American Judge from Philadelphia, and Judge Bryan Neft. One Republican Judge is running for Superior Court, Judge Megan Sullivan.
For PA’s Commonwealth Court, four Democrats are running, and two Republicans, which I listed in my column on page two of today’s edition of the SCOOP, as I did a spotlight on Judge Lori Dumas and Judge Sierra Street.
Back at the local level, for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, there are eight seats available this election cycle, and 16 candidates are running. There are no Republican candidates on the ballot this time for Common Pleas Court in Philadelphia.
For Judge of Municipal Court in Philadelphia, There
are three seats available and four candidates running. The candidates are all Democrats. They are Michael C. Lambert, Barbara Thomson, George Twardy, and Greg Yorgey-Girdy.
Finally, there are positions for Judge of Election and Inspector of Election in Philadelphia. You should know in Pennsylvania, the three main poll workers in a precinct. The Judge of Elections, a majority party inspector, and a minority party inspector are elected every four years.
In next week’s Civics column, I’ll tell you who the 16 candidates are, who are running for Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia. I’ll also give you some easy-to-understand language that breaks down those five ballot questions I wrote about a few weeks ago that made you go, Huh? Stay tuned for more Civics 101 next week. Got election day questions? Log on at www.VotesPa.com. Or call 215-686-3462.
