All the votes are in for yesterday’s primary election and here are some local results.

In the democratic primary for the 188th District representation in Pennsylvania House, incumbent James Roebuck defeated local businessman and community organizer Algernong Allen. Roebuck garnered 69 percent of the votes (4,097) versus 31 percent (1,814) for Allen.

Spruce Hill based Republican attorney Matthew Wolfe lost his bid for a seat in the City Council to Democratic candidate Ed Neilson in the special election to replace Councilman-at-Large Bill Green, who resigned his seat to head the School Reform Commission.

The ballot question that asked voters if the city’s minimum wage of $10.88 for city contractors should apply to sub-contractors, mainly Philadelphia International Airport workers, received 93,000 “yes” votes, versus 30,000 “no” votes as of about 11 p.m. on Tuesday (97 percent of precincts reporting), according to the Office of the City Commissioners website.

Tomorrow’s election has some pretty serious implications for the state, city and maybe even your neighborhood. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

First thing’s first. Where do you vote? Here ‘s a handy tool that will help you find your polling place if it’s your first time voting at your present address. Speaking of first timers, when you get to that polling place they will ask for identification if it’s your first time voting there. This is NOT an implementation of the controversial Voter ID law we have heard so much about. This is standard operating procedure.

Not sure if you are registered? You can check here.

Here is a list of all of the races tomorrow. You can also download a sample ballot there.

The big statewide race, of course, is the election of the Democratic challenger to Governor Tom Corbett. The Committee of 70 has a great recap of the candidates’ views on a number of issues – from school funding to the legalization of marijuana – at Guv Race 101.

As well known, for most elections in Philadelphia, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 6 to 1, the primary is all that matters. Locally, a race to keep an eye on is the 188th Legislative District, which includes University City, Spruce Hill, Walnut Hill and Cedar Park and some of Kingsessing and Cobbs Creek. Longtime incumbent State Rep. James Roebuck faces a stiff challenge from local businessman and community organizer Algernong Allen.

West Philly-based journalist Patrick Kerkstra predicted this morning on Twitter that this will be one to watch.

My sleeper race 4 tomorrow is in 188th. Where well-liked incumbent Jim Roebuck faces challenge from entrepreneur/activist Algernong Allen.

— Patrick Kerkstra (@pkerkstra) May 19, 2014

Another West Philly resident on the ballot is Matt Wolfe, the Spruce Hill attorney and Republican who is running for the at-Large City Council seat left vacant when Councilman Bill Green agreed to head the School Reform Commission. He faces State Rep. Ed Neilson, a Democrat and heavy favorite, and marijuana legalization activist Nikki Allen Poe (Facebook page).

Also of note are a couple of ballot questions. One is on the so-called “resign to run” rule, which requires city officeholders to resign to run for another city office. For example, Mayor Michael Nutter was forced to resign his City Council seat to run for mayor.

Opponents of the rule, which became part of the City’s charter in 1951, say it has lead to a stagnant political landscape. The election watchdog group Committee of 70 is in favor of scrapping the rule. Voters struck down a similar referendum question in 2007.

Another question will ask voters whether the city’s minimum wage of $10.88 for city contractors should apply to sub-contractors. Supporters of the ballot measure have focused mainly on the Philadelphia International Airport, where some of the estimated 3,000 sub-contracted workers make as little as $7 an hour with no benefits. (Full disclosure: Supporters of this measure paid for an advertisement on West Philly Local in support of the measure.)

Ahead of Tuesday’s election, Nutter signed an executive order last week raising the minimum wage for sub-contractors.

So, despite it being an off election year, there is still plenty at stake. So get out to the polls and make it happen.

–Mike Lyons

Renaissance Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center’s resident Fannie Mae Ausby with State Rep. James Roebuck (left), State Rep. candidate Algernong Allen, Renaissance staff and family at her 107th birthday party.

Renaissance Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, which is located near S. 47th and Chester, recently had a great celebration. One of its residents, Fannie Mae Ausby, turned 107 years old! On May 9, Ms. Ausby’s friends at Renaissance hosted an all-star gala in her honor, featuring music by local performer Jimmy Wells. Guests included members of the Ausby family, the staff and residents of Renaissance, Roger Harman of the Gold Standard Café, political candidate and community organizer Algernong Allen, and the 188th District’s State Representative James R. Roebuck.

Roebuck presented Ms. Ausby a citation from the State Capital. She also received a letter recognizing her birthday from Philadelphia City Mayor Michael Nutter.

When asked about how she felt to be going on to 107 she replied “Live right, eat right, love God and he loves you right back.”

Happy Birthday Ms. Ausby!

State Rep. James Roebuck presenting Ms. Ausby with a citation from the State Capital. (Photos courtesy of Renaissance).

Philippe Holland.

A group of West Philly residents are demanding answers about the shooting of an unarmed pizza delivery driver, Philippe Holland, who was critically wounded by two undercover officers near 51st and Willows in April.

The residents, many of whom live near where the shooting happened, are calling for the public release of results from the investigation into the shooting, according to a letter signed by dozens of residents and sent to local media on Monday.

The officers fired 14 times at Holland, striking him in the head, neck and leg. Holland, who is from Upper Darby, is recovering at a hospital in Newark, New Jersey. Many of the same neighbors started the “Fund for Phil” soon after the shooting to help raise money for Holland and his family.

Local residents who are interested in signing the letter should contact Patty Bulack of the 48th Street Neighbors group at: pbulack — at — gmail(dot)com.

Here is the letter in full:

We are residents of the West Philadelphia neighborhood where the 18th are concerned with the safety of our neighborhood and are grateful for the efforts of the Philadelphia Police Department and its officers to keep us and our neighborhood safe. We work hard at creating positive relationships with local public representatives, and with law enforcement, and hope that the outcome of this conversation will lead to an improved relationship, rather than broken trust.

We are writing in response to the shooting of Philippe Holland on April 22, 2014 at 51st and Willows by two undercover police officers. What we believe about the case is as follows:

• Philippe is a pizza delivery man, a job that is dangerous in a neighborhood such as ours where muggings are frequent.
• Police were responding to a shooting in the neighborhood, and suspected that Philippe was the shooter.
• Philippe fled in his car and was driving his car in the direction of the officers.
• In response, officers fired fourteen shots, despite police procedure that directs officers to not shoot at a moving vehicle.
• Three shots hit Philippe, placing him in critical condition.
• The officers who fired the shots were not in uniform, making it unclear who they were to anyone on the scene. We are concerned about that and wish that to be addressed. We believe that police should be clearly identified so as to help bring a situation under control, when they do so in a professional manner. Plainclothes officers have less at their disposal to identify themselves, which is important to do especially in situations where civilians may be distracted or panicked.
• We also question why relatively new officers were assigned to undercover duty in this case.

Given the subtleties that are introduced into their role by being undercover, it seems more prudent that veteran officers be prioritized for assignment to this kind of duty.

We are deeply troubled and disappointed by the actions of the two police officers involved. Many of us could find ourselves in a similar situation, and we are troubled that someone going about their job could be so severely injured by our local law enforcement. We are appreciative of the willingness of our local police to put themselves in danger for the sake of our collective safety. However, the response of the officers in this particular situation made us feel unsafe and we want to make sure this never happens again. Moreover, while the safety of our neighborhood’s residents is important to us, so is the safety of anyone who visits our neighborhood. We value living in a place where diversity thrives and desire it to be open to anyone regardless of race, gender or class. This incident undermined both our safety and our values.

In light of that, we request the following from the 18th Police District:

1. Information about the incident, the investigation and the final outcome: We cannot build trust with our local police force if we have no insight into the procedures that lead to a particular choice made by an officer, all of the details of an event and the reasons for the consequent disciplinary action or lack thereof. Similarly, we cannot trust that the investigation is being carried out justly, without knowing all of the details. Because of this, we request that upon completion of the investigation, the outcome of the investigation and all information relevant to the case be released and made available for community review.

2. Proper discipline for the police officers involved: We are aware that an investigation of this incident is currently underway and we appreciate that the Philadelphia Police Department is this incident seriously. We would like to reiterate the importance of properly disciplining the police officers involved.

Lastly, we want to note that we are aware of the ongoing review of the Philadelphia Police Department by the Department of Justice and of upcoming release of the findings. We plan to attend the public meeting and share our requests with the Department of Justice as well.

We appreciate your time in reading this letter and look forward to your response.

Regards,
Patty Bulack
Jamie Gauthier
Mariya Khandros
Algernong Allen
Barbara Tilley
Susan Heyner
Aravind Joshi
Sue Gerber
David Krueger
Amara Rockar
James Beck
Adam Weaver
James Beadle
Marcy Morgan
Chad Ostrowski
Tom O’Malley
Carolyn McCoy
Bruce Dorpalen
Jason Sandman
Liz Spikol
Nati Passow
Brian Spooner
Irene Plantholt
Steve Plantholt
Molly McGlone
Tina Horowitz
Fran Berge
Michael Froehlich
Bob Behr
Nancy Juergens
Jessi Roemer
Josh Block
Maryte Papadopoulos
Yanni Papadopoulos
Regine Joseph
Stacey Holiday
Lee Garner
Tim Emmett-Rardin
Jo-Ann Fishburn
Kimya Jackson
Margaret Ferrigno
Pamela Kane
Amy Kietzman
Karena Thurston Valentine

James Roebuck speaking at the Mariposa Food Co-op in 2012. (Archived photo/West Philly Local)

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of Q&A’s with local political candidates before the primary election on May 20. Our first Q&A, with Algernong Allen, is here. Next up is Matt Wolfe, who is running for a seat in Philadelphia’s City Council. Also, today is the last day to register to vote in the primary. For more information, visit: http://www.votespa.com.

Since assuming office in 1985, James Roebuck has represented West Philadelphia and the rest of the 188th district as state representative, and focused on education as the chairman of the House Education Committee.

Roebuck says he leans on his background as a trained teacher and former Drexel University professor to inform his work as an educational advocate. Through his years of service in the legislature, and under former Governor Ed Rendell, Roebuck lays claims to many successes, including an improved pre-K system and an increase in educational funding. And, on his off-time, he says, you can find him at any local school, reading to grade school students or tutoring second graders.

“To me, education is not just about the way you fund the schools, it’s also about the way you involve yourself in local schools,” Roebuck told West Philly Local.  Continue Reading

The Cedar Park Neighbors community organization will hold its annual meeting tonight, from 7 – 9 p.m. at Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th and Baltimore). All neighbors are welcome. The annual meeting is a great introduction to the organization, its work and accomplishments over the last year and plans for the coming year. You can also meet candidates for the CPN Board of Directors (more information about the candidates is available here). Voting for CPN Board Members will begin at 6:30 p.m.

The meeting will also include a conversation with the two local candidates for the state representative – James Roebuck (the incumbent) and Algernong Allen. The talk will be moderated by Cedar Park resident Bill Hangley Jr., a journalist with The Philadelphia Public School Notebook.

An informal meet and greet will follow the meeting.

Note: The meeting will take place at Calvary Center Sanctuary (please enter through the doors on the second floor).