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Did Mayor Cherelle Parker waste political capital with her first budget proposal? It’s complicated, insiders say.

It’s conventional wisdom in City Hall that mayors are expected to use their first budgets — when their popularity is highest and their influence greatest — to push Council to do something big.

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker does her “One Philly” sign while concluding first budget address in City Council chambers in Philadelphia, Pa. on Thursday, March 14, 2024.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker does her “One Philly” sign while concluding first budget address in City Council chambers in Philadelphia, Pa. on Thursday, March 14, 2024.Read moreHeather Khalifa / Staff Photographer