Philly voter turnout was high through the morning, Democrats say: ‘Lines everywhere I went’

Top Philadelphia Democrats said anecdotal evidence suggests in-person voter turnout was high through the morning hours Tuesday, projecting confidence that the deep-blue city would deliver more votes than it did in 2020.

”Lines everywhere I went,” Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said during an Election Day lunch at South Restaurant on North Broad Street, where she predicted the city would see record turnout.

“What we’re seeing is just sort of anecdotal right now,” Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said. “But kind of extra high turnout in the early part of the day, particularly here in Philly.”

And State Sen. Sharif Street, chair of the state Democratic Party, added: “What I’m hearing from committeepeople and ward leaders looks good.”

To win all-important Pennsylvania, Vice President Kamala Harris must run up her vote totals in Philadelphia and its voter-rich suburbs. The city has traditionally been a Democratic stronghold, and the party holds a 7-1 voter registration advantage here.

But Republicans see the city as ripe for growth. Former President Donald Trump has made some inroads with Black and Latino voters, men in particular, according to polls. And the city has over the last several years made up a shrinking share of the Democratic vote total in the state.

Officials have expected this year to see the highest in-person voting turnout since 2016. Mail ballot usage is down since 2020, particularly among Democrats, which means strength at the polls on an unseasonably warm day could just be a shift in how voters are voting.

» READ MORE: Democratic turnout in Philly has been soft. Will the Harris campaign’s amped-up ground game reverse the trend?

Philadelphia’s Office of the City Commissioners doesn’t have the ability to track citywide turnout in real time, so any speculation that turnout is high is based on instances at individual polling places.

Still, there was plenty of that going around by midday Tuesday.

In the 18th division of the city’s Second Ward, a typically high-turnout part of South Philadelphia, the division had hit 83% of its 2020 turnout (including mail and in-person ballots) as of 2 p.m., committeeperson Laura Boyce said. More than 400 people had voted in the division where 490 voters cast ballots in 2020.

In nearby Pennsport, Charlie Piechoski, a longtime worker at the Nelson M. Herron Playground polling station, said by lunchtime it was “absolutely highest turnout yet in my 30 years.” Piechoski said that more than 500 of the precinct’s 704 listed voters had already voted.

”We’ve never had this high a number with this much time left,” he said. “People care. People are coming out to vote.”

Gianni Hill, with the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, said the promising early turnout numbers were also showing up in some majority Black and Latino wards. As an example, he said Philadelphia’s 7th, 19th, and 43rd Wards were all at 75% of their 2020 turnout by noon. Those wards have had historically low turnout relative to the rest of the city.

Both candidates have made a push to appeal to voters of color in the city. Harris spent one of her final visits here at a Black barbershop in West Philadelphia and at a Puerto Rican restaurant. There is also evidence Trump has made some inroads, particularly with Latino men.

”We are cautiously optimistic that we are headed towards a larger turnout than we had in 2020,” Hill said.

At lunchtime at South, some of the city’s top Democrats were both publicly and privately expressing optimism about turnout in Philadelphia, which has been a perennial concern.

Parker mused that turnout could increase significantly compared with 2020, when the city delivered about 603,000 votes for President Joe Biden. She guessed it could rise to between 650,000 and 700,000 votes. Parker is also the leader of the 50th Ward in Northwest Philadelphia, and she said turnout there was surpassing the ward’s projections.

The last candidate to get at least 650,000 votes in Philadelphia was Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.

“Turnout is just beyond anything we could imagine,” Parker said at a campaign stop in Northeast Philly. “Everywhere I go, people have talked about it. I’m feeling so good right now. The energy is palpable.”

» READ MORE: Inside the GOP’s effort to help Donald Trump lose Philadelphia — by a little bit less

Some Democrats have expressed concern that blue-collar workers are less frequently voting with their unions and instead opting to back Trump. However, Mark Lynch, head of the politically potent electricians union, IBEW Local 98, said he wasn’t concerned — the union had 550 people knocking on doors on Tuesday.

”Turnout in Philly is skyrocketing right now,” he said, “which is a great sign.”

Inquirer staff writers Mike Newall and Kristen A. Graham contributed to this article.