Some Philly residents are more concerned about bullets than ballots

Election Day is Nov. 8, and I’m worried.

Turnout is notoriously low for midterms, and I’m deeply concerned that Tuesday will not be an exception. I think about it every day. I fret about what I am hearing from certain Philadelphians about voting — and also what I don’t hear. A lot of folks just don’t seem all that fired up about casting a ballot.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s not everybody. But there are some people who are paying attention to what’s going on around them, and are engaged with their communities, but politics isn’t exactly at the top of their minds. They’re less animated over issues such as who won the debate between Mehmet Oz and John Fetterman, or whether undated ballots should be counted. What they care about is an issue they haven’t heard people running for office talk nearly enough about: gun violence.

On Wednesday afternoon at LOVE Park, in the shadow of City Hall, I talked to Jermaine Brown, 33, who works as a recreational outreach worker. He told me straight up that he has no intention of voting on Tuesday.

“I don’t hear not one of [the candidates] talk about gun violence,” Brown explained. “I understand about abortion and taxes, but we have a gun violence crisis going on.”

The lack of attention to the issue affecting Brown most has left him feeling disengaged. “As we are talking right now, somebody is getting shot at,” he told me. “They are not talking about what we are talking about.”

Tone Williams, 43, who was picking up trash in the park, echoed the same sentiment and told me he isn’t planning to vote, either.

“I don’t think any of them are going to make a difference,” he said.

Plenty of other people in our area feel the same way, Fareed Abdullah, a teacher who recently announced plans to run for mayor, told me during a phone conversation that same day. “People are more concerned about the gun violence and not really focused on who’s being elected,” he said. “That’s the number-one issue.”

» READ MORE: Think your vote won’t matter? Think again.

I understand why gun violence is foremost on their minds. Philadelphia has logged more than 440 homicides in 2022. In some neighborhoods, residents are afraid to venture out at night for fear of catching a stray bullet. They fall asleep to the sound of gunshots. Staying alive is more pressing than casting a ballot.

It’s not just residents of these neighborhoods who feel left out of the political process. I’ve recently heard people in my own circle who aren’t particularly engaged in what’s going on with the election.

On Thursday, I talked to Tyrique Glasgow of the Young Chances Foundation, an organization that provides after-school support and mentoring for young people, about what’s going on.

“People don’t care about the election because the election don’t care about them,” he said, adding that a lot of people have tuned out.

Luckily, it’s not everybody, as I pointed out earlier. I took a break from writing this column to cast my vote. But each time I meet someone who speaks negatively about what’s going on, I get scared all over again.

So much is on the line.

Republican election denier Doug Mastriano is trailing Democrat Josh Shapiro in the gubernatorial race, according to the latest abc27/Emerson College/The Hill poll. But the Senate race is essentially neck-and-neck between Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Mehmet Oz, who are slugging it out to be the next U.S. senator representing Pennsylvania.

Hugely important things hinge on the outcome of this election, including the future of our democracy — along with Social Security, Medicare, and a woman’s basic right to have control over her reproductive choices. We cannot sit this one out.

This isn’t a popularity contest. It’s about choosing between the candidates who you feel best serve you and those you love. This is our chance to be heard. We can’t blow it by not showing up.