The Red and the Blue

A map of Philadelphia's Wards

When Obama came to Philly for the Pennsylvania primary he ruffled some feathers by declaring that he would not dole out street money to the local Democratic political machine.

In a venerable city like Philadelphia, street money is one of those lubricants that keeps the system flowing. It pays for transportation expenses, food, buttons, literature and people to get out the vote on election day.

Committee people are the biggest recipients of street money on election day, receiving between $50 and $400 for working 14 hours getting people to the polls. These political workers are elected officials from Philadelphia’s smallest political unit: the division. Philly has over 1,600 divisions, each containing between 100 and 1,200 registered voters. Each division elects two four committee people, one two Democrats and one two Republicans. (Edit: thanks to Adam Lang for the correction)

In turn, these committee people elect the ward leaders who hand out the cash.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Rep. Bob Brady, also the head of Philadelphia’s Democratic Party, ripped a $50 bill in half and gave it to two workers. Whoever brought in the most votes would receive both halves.

There are 66 wards in Philadelphia, containing approximately 30,000 people and between 10 and 50 divisions. They are led by ward leaders elected by the committee people. Each ward has a Democratic and a Republican leader. (Note: some wards are split up into two. i.e. 39a and 39b)

So why are ward leaders important?

Because they form the membership of Philadelphia’s political parties which provide political candidates with endorsements, mula and the organizational oomph to get elected. Their power even gets the attention of presidential candidates. President Clinton was sent by Hillary to woo the Democratic committee people and gain their support.

While these endorsements help Presidential contenders, they are crucial for local officials. In a one-party city with low turnout, the party’s (i.e. the Democratic party) support is often decisive, especially for obscure races like the City Controller, Philadelphia Municipal Court, State Representative or Inspector of Election.

On election day, UPenn’s ward, number 27, spent $3,100 paying committee people to get out the vote. There are 23 divisions in Ward 27. Assuming Republican committee people didn’t receive any money (Ward 27 is almost 90% Democratic), that comes out to approximately $135 $67.5 a person. Assuming the committee people worked 14 hours a day, they earned $9.60 $4.80 an hour. But they also received free food. Ward 27 spent $444 on lunch…at Fresh Grocer.

Update: Here is a ward map for Ward 27. Also, it looks like the quad is it’s own division (#22). I’m going to find out who the committee members are.

Yanik Ruiz-Ramon Uncategorized Bob Brady, Democrat, Democratic Party, division, street money, ward