Pennsylvania Working Families Party candidates seek to end Republican control of minority seats on Nov.5th
PHILADELPHIA: Ahead of Election Day, SEIU 32BJ hosted a rally for Working Families Party slate candidates Kendra Brooks and Nicolas O’Rourke in support of their bid to end Republican control of minority seats on the Philadelphia City Council. Dozens of supporters including union members, local organizations, labor leaders, and elected officials came out on Saturday to hear about the historic campaign for the WFP only candidates and canvass the neighborhood to talk to voters.
“We are knocking on thousands of doors for Nicolas and Kendra because they will stand up for working people in Philadelphia and usher in a new progressive era,” said Gabe Morgan, Vice President of 32BJ SEIU and Working Families Party Chair. “City Council should fully reflect the progressive majority that wants Philadelphia to be a city where your zip code does not determine your future. Electing Working Families Party candidates, Nicolas and Kendra will finally give voters a progressive alternative that gets ride of Republican minority obstruction and strengthens a progressive majority.”
Labor has rallied around Kendra and Nicolas, with 32BJ, AFSCME District 1199C, TAUP, SEIU Healthcare PA, UNITE HERE Philadelphia, PASNAP and BMWED-IBT all pledging their support in the run-up to Election Day on Nov. 5th.
Nicolas and Kendra are committed to working towards a Philadelphia where one job is enough to get by. That means enforcing prevailing wage laws, Fair Work Week, protecting workers against wage theft, guaranteeing paid sick days, and protecting the right to unionize.
The emergent candidates have run an incredible campaign leading up to election day, and have collectively raised more than $350,000, the most of any third-party council bid in history. Nicolas and Kendra are running a grassroots campaign that has earned the endorsements a growing list including Make the Road PA, Democratic Socialists of America, One Pennsylvania, CADBI (Coalition to Abolish Death By Incarceration), Neighborhood Networks, and the Sunrise Movement Philadelphia.
State Sen. Art Haywood and State Reps. Chris Rabb, Movita Johnson-Harrell, Brian Sims, Elizabeth Fiedler, and Malcolm Kenyatta have also backed both candidates.
The Working Families Party is seeking to end Republican control of two At-Large Council seats by electing working families champions O’Rourke and Brooks in the Nov. 5 general election.
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