HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – It looked like progressive Chris Rabb had a mountain to climb to win the Democratic nomination for a congressional district in Philadelphia.
The mayor and the city’s Democratic Party had endorsed another candidate in this week’s primary. So had members of the Pennsylvania delegation in the US House. A rival of Rabbit was backed by millions of dollars. A second benefited from a get-out-the-vote operation led by influential local construction unions.
But Rabb finished 15 percentage points ahead of his nearest competitor Tuesday’s electionand the state representative will likely travel to Washington because no Republican sought the GOP nomination.
Rabb was pushed by a constellation of progressive groups, charting a path to victory in part by attacking his party as listening more to donors than voters. He praised a grassroots movement inspired by the mayor of New York Zohran Mamdanialarmed by the Republican president Donald Trump and hungry for a government that responds to their needs.
“That was the core of why I ran and that’s what I built my campaign around and that, I believe, is a chord that we struck in this electorate that showed up and went gangbusters,” Rabb said in an interview with The Associated Press.
The progressive left counts Rabb’s success as one of his biggest wins of the year and the latest warning sign that Democratic voters see the party’s leadership as weak and mindless in opposition to Trump. Progressives are also vying for House seats in New York, California and Michigan, where they are challenging Democratic incumbents or aiming to take on vulnerable Republicans.
Rabb, 55, is a self-described Democratic socialist and “proud troublemaker” who reliably supported the most progressive causes in the House during his five terms. His supporters said voters sent an important signal this week.
“They want someone who knows what they stand for and is willing to fight, whether it’s fighting Donald Trump now or fighting an economy and political system rigged for billionaires in the years to come,” said Adam Green, a co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee.
Progressives are finding their footing in the midterms
The retreat from progressives in the midterm races has raised concerns from moderates that far-left candidates will turn away middle-of-the-road voters and waste a politically favorable year to unseat Republicans, retake control of Congress and block Trump’s agenda during his final two years in office.
Mike Mikus, a Pittsburgh-based Democratic strategist, said progressives could be a problem down the road for the Democratic Party, but not this year.
“No matter who we name, gas prices are still very high, food prices are still very high, and people generally feel that the economy is not in a good place,” Mikus said. “And voters will vote for change.”
Perhaps Rabb’s biggest supporter was the Working Families Party, which says the Democratic and Republican institutions have sold out to powerful interests. The organization has supported several members of Congress and Analilia Mejía became the newest addition after winning a special election in New Jersey on April 16.
Rabb doesn’t know what to expect in Washington. “Are we going to have a razor-thin majority? Are we going to be in a razor-thin minority?”
He sees Congress as a place where most are unwilling to take bold steps because of the money in politics. In his victory speech, Rabb showed the fire that his progressive supporters say helped win over voters.
“I’ve been criticized during this campaign for being too radical, too bold,” Rabb told the crowd. “They haven’t seen anything yet.”
Rabb’s positions on many issues raised during the campaign were not dramatically different from those of his rivals, such as supporting impeachment of Trump, repealing US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, placing a moratorium on data centers, or defending “Medicare for all.”
He was distinctive in emphasizing his support for government-run grocery stores — to wipe out “food deserts” — and a sweeping minimum wage law that eliminates a lower minimum wage and covers independent contractors such as gig workers.
Perhaps most importantly, Rabb was a fierce critic of establishment politics, including that of his own party.
He said people are tired of domestic politicians and the politics of big donors. This leads to poor voter turnout, even though Trump is president and has a strong antipathy against “MAGA extremism and corporate greed,” he said, referring to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.
“We can learn from this victory, because if establishment politics were as effective and productive as people would like to think, then I would have been blown out of the water,” Rabb said.
Campaign expenses and surrogates
Sharif Street, a state senator and former state party chairman, finished second on Tuesday. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker campaigned for it, and union building raised more than $600,000.
Dr. Ala Stanford was third, receiving support from retiring incumbent Dwight Evans and $3.5 million in spending from 314 Action, a left-leaning political action committee aimed at electing scientists to Congress.
The state’s most prominent Democrat, Gov. Josh Shapirodid not endorse a candidate. He called after the election to congratulate Rabb.
Rabb raised at least $1.8 million in spending assistance from allied progressive groups, according to federal campaign disclosures. U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., campaigned for him four days before the election date.
Supporters celebrated his triumph over the city’s party “machine”.
“The fact that Chris was able to win in the riding is significant and should send a shock wave to the Democratic establishment that grassroots voters are fed up and want transformative change,” said Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of Our Revolution, which was founded by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
As progressive groups make deeper inroads in Philadelphia, some Democrats pointed out that Rabb received only 45% of the vote, meaning that perhaps a candidate with unified establishment support could have prevailed. Others suggested Rabb was helped by a low-turnout election in which less than a third of registered Democrats voted.
“The momentum, the vibe, the feelings people have about a candidate will make a difference,” said Mustafa Rashed, a Democratic political consultant in Philadelphia.
Rabb said he almost didn’t see the end of the race and considered dropping out after reporting his campaign treasurer for the money theft.
He felt such a sense of betrayal, combined with the stress of being outnumbered by his rivals, that he worried it would derail his candidacy.
“There was a lot of internal conversation about what the path forward is for me,” Rabb said. “I had to dig in and just reaffirm that I’m walking in my purpose and that’s exactly what I’m supposed to do, no matter the adversity.”
By MARC LEVY Associated Press
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