Philadelphia City Council

Philadelphia City Council
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Leadership
President
Kenyatta Johnson, Democratic
since January 2, 2024
Majority Leader
Minority Leader
Kendra Brooks, WFP
since January 1, 2024
Structure
Seats17
Political groups
Majority

Minority

Elections
Last election
November 7, 2023
Next election
November 2, 2027
Meeting place
Philadelphia City Hall
Website
City Council Website
City Hall from postcard, c. 1900
Districts map of the council from the 2023 election
(Interactive version)
Districts map of the council from the 2015 election until terms end in 2024
(Interactive version)

The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each member's term is four years, and there are no limits on the number of terms a member may serve.

History

While William Penn's original 1691 charter for the city of Philadelphia included a "common council," no records exist of this body ever having been convened. Its successor, the Proprietor's Charter of 1701, constituted the city as a municipal corporation with a non-elected council made up of major city officials who selected their own successors. The colonial city government was abolished during the American Revolution and replaced in 1789 with an elected council including fifteen aldermen and thirty common councillors; these then elected a mayor and recorder who also were members of the council. In 1796, a bicameral city council was created including a 20-member Common Council and 12-member Select Council; the sizes of both bodies increased with the population of the city, peaking at 149 members of Common Council and 41 in Select Council, the largest municipal legislature in the US. It was replaced with a single 21-member chamber in 1919, which remained in effect until the adoption of a Home Rule charter in 1951.

Composition and term

The 1951 Home Rule Charter established the council as the legislative arm of Philadelphia municipal government, consisting of seventeen members. Ten council members are elected by district and seven from the city at large. At-large council members are elected using limited voting with limited nomination in which voters may only select five candidates on the ballot, and which guarantees that two minority-party or independent candidates are elected. Each is elected for a term of four years with no limit on the number of terms that may be served.

The members of City Council elect from among themselves a president, who serves as the regular chairperson of council meetings. In consultation with the majority of council members, the President appoints members to the various standing committees of the council. The president is also responsible for selecting and overseeing most Council employees.

Legislative process

Every proposed ordinance is in the form of a bill introduced by a Council member. Before a bill can be enacted, it must be referred by the president of the council to an appropriate standing committee, considered at a public hearing and public meeting, reported out by the committee, printed as reported by the committee, distributed to the members of the council, and made available to the public. Passage of a bill requires the favorable vote of a majority of all members. A bill becomes law upon the approval of the mayor. If the mayor vetoes a bill, the council may override the veto by a two-thirds vote.

Under the rules of the council, regular public sessions are held weekly, usually on Thursday morning at 10:00am, in Room 400, City Hall. Council normally breaks for the summer months of July and August.

Gerrymandering

In a 2006 computer study of local and state legislative districts, two of the city's ten council districts, the 5th and the 7th, were found to be among the least compact districts in the nation, giving rise to suspicions of gerrymandering. The Committee of Seventy, a non-partisan watchdog group for local elections, asked candidates for council in 2007 to support a list of ethics statements, including a call for fair redistricting, which should take place after the 2010 United States Census. In 2011, the council approved a redistricting map with more compact boundaries, eliminating the gerrymandered borders of the 5th and 7th districts; it took effect for the 2015 elections.

City council members

As of January 2, 2024:

District Name Took office Party
1 Mark Squilla 2012 Dem
2 Kenyatta Johnson, Council President 2012 Dem
3 Jamie Gauthier 2020 Dem
4 Curtis J. Jones Jr. 2008 Dem
5 Jeffery Young Jr. 2024 Dem
6 Michael Driscoll 2022 Dem
7 Quetcy Lozada 2022 Dem
8 Cindy Bass 2012 Dem
9 Anthony Phillips 2022 Dem
10 Brian J. O'Neill 1980 Rep
At-large Katherine Gilmore Richardson, Majority Leader 2020 Dem
At-large Isaiah Thomas 2020 Dem
At-large Kendra Brooks, Minority Leader 2020 WFP
At-large Jim Harrity 2022 Dem
At-large Nina Ahmad 2024 Dem
At-large Rue Landau 2024 Dem
At-large Nicolas O'Rourke Minority whip 2024 WFP


Presidents of the City Council

President Term Term end Political party
James A. Finnegan January 1, 1951 (1951-01-01) January 14, 1955 (1955-01-14) Democratic
James Tate January 20, 1955 (1955-01-20) January 6, 1964 (1964-01-06) Democratic
Paul D'Ortona January 6, 1964 (1964-01-06) January 3, 1972 (1972-01-03) Democratic
George X. Schwartz January 3, 1972 (1972-01-03) May 29, 1980 (1980-05-29) Democratic
Joseph E. Coleman October 30, 1980 (1980-10-30) January 6, 1992 (1992-01-06) Democratic
John F. Street January 6, 1992 (1992-01-06) December 31, 1998 (1998-12-31) Democratic
Anna C. Verna January 14, 1999 (1999-01-14) December 15, 2011 (2011-12-15) Democratic
Darrell L. Clarke January 2, 2012 (2012-01-02) January 1, 2024 (2024-01-01) Democratic
Kenyatta Johnson January 2, 2024 (2024-01-02) Incumbent Democratic

See also


This page was last updated at 2024-01-31 05:48 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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