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Philly’s Democratic Party’s non-endorsement warm embrace of Cherelle Parker for mayor

Philadelphia’s Democratic City Committee is technically neutral in the May 16 primary for mayor. It didn’t look or sound that way at the party’s Spring Dinner.

Bob Brady, chair of the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, embraces Cherelle Parker (left) after calling her to the stage during the United Democratic Spring Dinner at the Sheetmetal Workers banquet hall on Tuesday.
Bob Brady, chair of the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, embraces Cherelle Parker (left) after calling her to the stage during the United Democratic Spring Dinner at the Sheetmetal Workers banquet hall on Tuesday.Read moreTom Gralish / Staff Photographer
    by Chris Brennan
    Updated 
    Published 

Philadelphia’s Democratic City Committee is technically neutral in the May 16 primary for mayor.

It didn’t look or sound that way at the party’s annual spring dinner Tuesday, where chairman Bob Brady and the assembled ward leaders greeted Cherelle Parker with a cheering embrace.

» READ MORE: Your no-nonsense guide to the May 2023 Democratic primary for mayor, Council, and row offices

Brady emceed the crowded and raucous event, opening his speech from the stage by noting that Parker, a former City Council member who resigned to run for mayor, was the only candidate for that office who attended the dinner.

“I want you to hear this,” Brady told the crowd of ward leaders, committee people, political consultants and candidates for other offices. “This is about respect.”

Brady said he planned to have the mayoral candidates stand on stage but not speak if they had attended. He appeared to be speaking about the other four top-tier candidates — Jeff Brown, Allan Domb, Helen Gym, and Rebecca Rhynhart.

“One person showed up. And you know what that is? That’s about respect,” Brady told crowd before urging Parker to deliver a stump speech. “She came here to respect us, to take time out of her busy schedule to come to this cocktail party. We need to show the respect back to her.”

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Parker seized the opportunity, grabbing the microphone and launching into a call-and-response speech that sounded much more like a rally for her campaign than a neutral party function.

“I want you to know that I too am a proud ward leader here in the city of Philadelphia,” she said, her voice booming. “And although I’m running at the top, I’m going to do everything in my power to encourage our voters to come out to vote.”

Parker vowed to be an accessible mayor if elected, willing to talk to anyone about how to fix problems in the city.

‘I’m running to be the 100th mayor in the city of Philadelphia, the first woman, first Black woman out the city,” she said to cheers. “I can’t do it without your help.”

Two other people on the ballot, Amen Brown and Warren Bloom, made it on stage but were not allowed to speak.

Two former Democratic candidates for mayor, former City Council members Maria Quiñones Sánchez and Derek Green, have endorsed Parker in the last week as more of the party’s traditional infrastructure — ward leaders, elected officials, labor unions — have backed her.

Brady, as the dinner wrapped up, said he called all nine mayoral candidates but got few responses. The party’s ward leaders voted in February to not endorse in the crowded field for mayor.

Brady said that is still the party’s official stance on the race.