Philadelphia will hold runoff elections in two Pennsylvania state legislature districts on Tuesday, but with no Republican candidates in the running, there is little doubt that Democrats Keith Harris and Andrew Carroll will be the city’s next state representatives.
Harris, who is running to replace former Rep. Donna Bullock in the 195th Legislative District, has four decades of service to Northwest Philadelphia, which he would represent in Harrisburg.
Carroll, a candidate to replace former state Rep. Stephen Kinsey in the 201st Legislative District, says he will bring the perspective of a Philadelphia public school teacher who has experience overcoming adversity and finding opportunity in a neighborhood “that has been left behind for too long.”
Bullock was appointed CEO of the homeless advocacy nonprofit Project HOME in June. Bullock has represented the 195th Legislative District since 2016.
Kinsey announced in January that the current legislative session would be his last. Kinsey has served as state representative for the 201st Legislative District since 2013.
Both officially he resigned in JulyTheir districts are considered protected for Democrats, who have a 102-seat majority in the House of Representatives that the caucus has maintained through a series of special elections this session.
House Republicans have criticized the decision to hold a special election just weeks before the Nov. 5 presidential election, which involves the state’s full House of Representatives.
Citing the resignations of Bullock and Kinsey, state Rep. Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia), whose 200th congressional district borders both counties, proposed legislation streamline the special election process in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He noted that Pennsylvania spent nearly $1 million to hold a special election in 2023, according to the State Department.
House of Representatives Bill 1831 would ensure the timeliness, cost-effectiveness, and accessibility of special elections by requiring that a special election be held early when a seat becomes vacant more than 90 days before the next election. It would require that the special election be held at least 60 days before the next primary or general election.
The fresh legislation would also require automatic mail-in voting for all elections, Rabb said, and would give county boards of elections the ability to set up satellite polling locations, allow nonpartisan voters to participate and allow candidates to electronically collect signatures for nominating petitions.
According to him campaign websiteHarris began his community service career in 1984 with the Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network, which spawned the city’s mural arts project. Harris served as a leader in the 28th Ward, where he focused on fair housing and community-friendly development.
Harris said his experience as Philadelphia City Council sergeant-at-arms also gave him experience in the legislative process. In the House, Harris said he hopes to promote mental health advocacy, employment and career opportunities, education and public safety, according to his website.
Carroll speaks on his own campaign website that he was raised by his grandmother because his father was in prison and his mother struggled with drug abuse. When his grandmother died, he took over care of his younger brother at a youthful age.
The lessons of tough work, perseverance, and recognizing opportunity taught him by his grandmother motivated him to finish school, earn his diploma, and simultaneously work full-time to become a public school teacher.
Carroll’s website says he has also worked for the Philadelphia City Controller’s Office, where he created a financial literacy course for high school students, and for state Sen. Anthony Williams (D-Philadelphia), providing voter services. He has also volunteered for Democratic campaigns and for Working Families Party candidate Nicolas O’Rourke, who ran for Philadelphia City Council in 2019.
