Thursday, February 25, 2010

Democratic Candidates for 195th House District

Long time state representative Frank Oliver is retiring. His district, the 195th, represents part of Philadelphia, and includes Drexel University, Mantua, and across the Schuylkill up to around W. Dauphin St., ending somewhere between N. 21st and Broad St. As convoluted as that sounds it is actually a more compact district than many in the city. His longtime aide Michelle Brownlee is running (can't find a campaign site for her).

Another Democrat, Chris Rooney, is also running. Rooney, an attorney, is a graduate of Temple and Penn and lives in the Fairmount section of the district. His website, www.voterooney.org has several short issue statements. According to his biographical statement he rides SEPTA, always a good thing. Voters in that district might want to take a look.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rooney looks like a grassroots candidate that is committed to the people of the 195th. His issue statements all directly relate to the people in the district. i love that he rides SEPTA everyday and gives his bus route.

Joe said...

I'm excited to see that someone has stepped up to challenge Michelle Brownlee's coronation! The campaign site for Chris looks very nice and its a promising step that we, as voters in the 195th, won't just have our state rep "assigned" by the party.

Big C said...

Chris Rooney is just what the city needs -- a progressive voice that's not part of the machine. His website shows he's intent on keeping education, jobs, and health care at the top of his list. That's good stuff for Philadelphians. He'll need money to make a good run against Oliver's hand-picked successor. Folks should make a contribution to his campaign, if they want any hope of some new blood in the General Assembly.

Anonymous said...

How is it possible that Brownlee does not have a website?

AboveAvgJane said...

Brownlee might have a campaign site -- I just didn't see it in a cursory google search. There are some other Michelle Brownlees out there that complicate search results.

Anonymous said...

Rooney has dropped out of the race. Jamila Payne is another progressive candidate who's worth considering. Her campaign website should be up soon. Michelle Brownlee, Oliver's chosen successor, is a convicted felon and might not be able to be seated even if she won the race.