The Ward Emergency

The City Paper/YPP Project

by Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg

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Published: Feb 21, 2007

This is the second installment of a collaboration between City Paper and political blog Young Philly Politics. Over the past two years, YPP has become a place where politicians, activists and other present and future leaders go to discuss issues. In the run-up to the May 15 mayoral primary, we asked YPPers to brainstorm solutions to some of the city's problems, which we'll publish here in consolidated column form. This week's topic is the ward leader system, and your introduction is by YPP co-editor Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg.

Ward leaders: For many young activists, the term does not conjure civic pride. Instead, it brings up vague images of back rooms, decisions made by insiders for insiders, and a party structure that wants to keep pesky newcomers on the outside looking in. Making it seem all the more shady for some observers is the fact that we don't directly elect, or generally even know, them. This point was highlighted last year when Democratic ward leaders gathered to fill three City Council vacancies and decided that the best people to serve were, yep, ward leaders.

The system dates back to a time when our dominant party was the GOP; the ward leaders would "take care of you," whether your concern was a job, nuisance or pothole. There was, of course, an explicit trade-off: your vote. But with the ability to use a system like the proposed 311 to get city services, and more government jobs turning to civil service, ward leaders have seemingly become less relevant.

The basic tenet of having an ultra-local representative in a metropolis plays well in our famously provincial City of Neighborhoods. Besides, not all ward leaders and committeepeople are bad; most serve out of a sense of duty. (And not all aspects of the ward system are bad, either; it helps the party turn out the vote.) So, I asked the YPP community what they thought: Do we just need new party leadership, or does the whole system need an overhaul? And, what is the role of progressives in all of this?

Most agreed that a structure to organize at a local level makes sense, but that it has been corrupted by bad rules, a lack of accountability and the distortion of principles that unchecked power brings. Our agenda, respondents said, should be twofold. First, change the structure and rules of the ward system to demand greater openness and transparency. Second, build organizations outside the system that will keep it honest and hold it accountable.

Is the system a "turnout machine" like we're told? Not really, implies YPP co-editor (and employee of the Fattah for Mayor campaign) Ray Murphy, who suggested the city should consider hiring an organizing director: "About 50 percent of all registered Philadelphians vote, which is on the low end in a comparison to other counties in the state."

Another argument is that the system can be used to get good people into office. "A ward system can be an incredible force for encouraging grassroots political participation, for linking local issues to national politics, and for outright political education," writes former Councilman Ed Schwartz. In other words, things could be better. Here are some thoughts on how to get there:

Have ward leaders be directly elected by the voters rather than by committeepeople, I suggested. When the U.S. Senate became directly elected rather than elected by state legislatures, the focus of senators changed to the needs of the electorate. Similarly, having ward leaders answer directly to voters removes their layer of insulation from the democratic process, and may make them more accountable.

Schwartz noted that the reason committee terms were switched from two years to four was to help prevent challenges to party power. A number of readers, including A.J. Thomson and Karen Bojar, agreed that more-frequent elections would lead to a more vibrant, responsive system, with a chance for electoral change always looming.

A number of readers suggested a strong 311 system to effectively deliver city services, taking away the need for ward leaders to serve as a conduit to City Hall.

As Adam B. wrote, "A fully implemented 311 system would take a lot of power away from ward leaders as being the sole fix-its in the system."

"I'd like to see a complete separation between the election of judges and the ward leaders," argued my brother, Alex Urevick-Ackelsberg. "I don't want judges who can afford to pay people in smoke-filled rooms; I want the best, most capable, judges to preside over our city. The current system seems set up to ensure that we get mediocre judges, and I can't believe that there isn't some connection between this twisted method of buying a judge's seat and our seemingly broken judicial system."

Sam Durso thought the committee structure could become professionalized by paying small salaries: "People will have more of an incentive to run for committee and to participate in the party. Make those salaries contingent on performance (if you fail to show up on Election Day, the party fails to pay you)."

Murphy suggested that we enact same-day registration, letting people vote anywhere in the city (for example, near where they work), or start a vote-by-mail process. [See "Diminished Returns" on p. 12 for other ideas.]

All the new rules in the world won't make the system work if someone isn't serving as a watchdog. To that end, Jeff Hornstein and Stan Shapiro both emphasized the need to have a structure that continually exists outside of the system, such as the two-year-old Neighborhood Networks, that can serve as both a progressive caucus and a watchdog.

Two semi-regular YPP participants, Councilman Jim Kenney and Lou Agre, a ward leader from Roxborough, struck a similar theme: No matter what changes you enact, the basic solution for progressives is to stop complaining and get involved in the system. Why, when we can have something better, do we settle for the status quo?

Young progressives are getting involved, on both the inside and outside. But even if they continue to do so and, in 20 years, a YPPer becomes a city councilperson, we'll need an open system and outside structures to keep them accountable.

(doron@citypaper.net)

To join next week's discussion on a yet-to-be-determined topic, or read more about this week's topic, visit youngphillypolitics.com.

 

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