City Hall is about to see some serious turnover that will determine the direction of Philadelphia government

If you’re not a fan of what’s been happening at City Hall recently, 2024 could be your year.

Philadelphia’s city government is in a period of massive turnover, and next year will bring not only a new mayor but also a new City Council president, who will preside over a lawmaking body on which at least 12 of the 17 members have served one term or less.

Other offices could turn over, as well, with incumbents facing challengers in races for city controller, sheriff, register of wills, and at least one of three city commissioner positions.

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Council President Darrell L. Clarke’s announcement last week that he is not seeking reelection marked the latest shake-up in an already enormously consequential municipal election year. Clarke and Mayor Jim Kenney, who is term-limited, will both leave office in the first week of January, marking the end of an era and opening the door to a new generation of leaders.

While the faces will be new, that level of turnover in the city’s two most powerful offices is not. There have been six instances since the early 1950s in which a new mayor and Council president took office at the same time, or within about a year of each other.

It’s far less common, however, for those top offices to change hands at a time when Council is undergoing so much turnover.

The coming changes arrive as frustration grows over the city’s struggles to deal with a persistent gun violence crisis and other challenges. Progressives, establishment Democrats, and business-aligned interests are aiming to influence this year’s election to steer City Hall in their direction.

John C. Hawkins, a veteran City Hall lobbyist, said Clarke’s decision not to seek reelection “dramatically increases the stakes of this year’s election.”

“With a new mayor, new Council president, and so many new Council members, Philadelphia could suddenly turn hard to the left, back to the center, or plunge into gridlock,” Hawkins said.

Al Spivey, a former chief of staff to Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr., said that despite the enormous turnover, he doesn’t expect “a total brain drain,” thanks to the legislative staff.

“I do think that this is a very good time in our history,” Spivey said. “The public will have some excellent choices, and the city of Philadelphia will benefit.”

The simultaneous arrival of a new mayor and Council president does not guarantee harmony in City Hall.

Take Mayor Frank L. Rizzo and Council president George X. Schwartz, who both took office in 1972. An Inquirer investigation found that Rizzo had created a 34-member police unit to spy on Schwartz, who would later resign amid the Abscam scandal, and other political rivals.

Conversely, the 1991 election brought in Mayor Ed Rendell and the Council presidency of John F. Street, who formed a successful if unlikely partnership that many credit with rescuing the city from a fiscal catastrophe.

Rendell went on to become governor, and Street succeeded him as mayor. For his North Philadelphia district, Street backed his chief of staff, Clarke, who went on to become Council president himself in 2012.

Other instances of the two offices turning over about the same time have coincided with historic firsts for the city. Joseph E. Coleman became the first Black Council president in 1980, months after Bill Green III became mayor. Anna C. Verna became the first woman to lead Council in 1999, replacing Street.

Next year may bring another milestone. Philadelphia has never elected a woman as mayor, and four women are running.

Meanwhile, Clarke and Kenney, who was previously on Council, will leave office next year with a combined 77 years of experience in City Hall. Whether their replacements are looking to shake up the status quo or preserve it will help determine Philadelphia’s next chapter.

For many years, Council freshman classes usually included about three new members. In 2008, for instance, freshman members Jones, Maria Quiñones Sánchez, and Bill Green IV, the former mayor’s son, pledged to work together and challenge the status quo.

Green, who would later leave Council to head the School Reform Commission, recalled proposing with Jones and Sánchez “the Freshman 15,” a series of cost-saving measures, just as the nation entered a recession.

“We were impactful because we were organized when we came in,” Green said.

But after them, turnover picked up. Six new members won seats in the 2011 election, followed by five in 2015, and four in 2019.

Then chaos broke out between election cycles. Councilmember Bobby Henon resigned in early 2022 after being convicted on federal bribery charges, and six Council members resigned within the last year to run for mayor.

Five of those seven vacancies have already been filled by special elections. The new lawmakers who are running for reelection will enjoy some of the advantages of incumbency — all have been endorsed by Democratic ward leaders, for instance — but they will likely have to fight for their seats more than a longtime member would.

Put it all together, and Council is left with a bizarre scenario in which the members who started the current term as freshmen will be tied for at least sixth in seniority by January.

But a crush of new members doesn’t necessarily mean Council’s old ways of doing business will disappear overnight.

“I would say it will make whoever the next president is probably the most powerful president in recent memory,” Green said.

Progressive activists and political groups are hoping to take advantage of the moment by electing Helen Gym as mayor and expanding the number of Council members who share their worldview.

Since 2020, Philly’s Council has had its own version of the U.S. House of Representatives’ “squad” of left-wing lawmakers that included Gym and first-term members Jamie Gauthier, a Democrat who represents West Philly, and Kendra Brooks, an at-large member from the Working Families Party.

Although Gym resigned, progressives see several possibilities for growing their ranks.

Brooks in 2019 won one of the two seats on Council that are reserved for minority-party representatives and had been held by Republicans for 70 years. The Working Families Party is hoping to take the second seat this November by securing a victory for candidate Nicolas O’Rourke.

In addition, Councilmember Cindy Bass, who represents parts of North and Northwest Philadelphia, is being challenged by union organizer Seth Anderson-Oberman, and Democratic candidates for Council at-large seats include Rue Landau, a civil rights lawyer, and Amanda McIllmurray, the former director of the Bernie Sanders-inspired political group Reclaim Philadelphia, which has support from progressives.

Sergio Cea, the new political director of Reclaim, said the turnover in City Hall presents an “immense opportunity for the progressive movement.”

Reclaim is planning a robust door-knocking operation ahead of the May primary and is hoping to build a large enough progressive bloc on Council to sway the race to replace Clarke.

“There will not only be new players, but new people to build relationships with,” he said. “It’s a good time to envision the city government that we want.”

Staff writers Anna Orso and Chris Brennan contributed to this article.