A Handy Guide to Philadelphia’s April 2024 Primary Election

The Pennsylvania primary is happening Tuesday, April 23, when Democrats and Republicans will have the chance to vote for their party’s nominees for Congress, state row offices, and more — so we’re here with a guide to help you understand it all.

The most important thing to know going into this election: You’ll only see races from your own party on the ballot. If you’re not registered as a Democrat or a Republican, the only thing you will see is this cycle’s ballot question.

If you want to change your political party — or if you’re not registered to vote at all — here’s what you need to do to make that happen. (You have until April 8.)

Primary races can have a lot of candidates, just one, or possibly even none. Use this guide as a starting point for learning about the Pennsylvania and Philly primary races that have at least two candidates — from attorney general to state representative — and what these jobs are for.

Click each candidate's name to see their campaign website, and keep scrolling through the guide for more context and resources.

Pennsylvania’s attorney general is the commonwealth’s top law enforcement official, who is responsible for things like prosecuting organized crime and public corruption, enforcing state tax laws, representing Pennsylvania in legal matters, and protecting consumers. The AG oversees a staff of hundreds and typically serves in four-year terms.

The current attorney general is Michelle Henry, a Democrat appointed to the position after former AG Josh Shapiro became governor. She is not running for election, so the race is wide open.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Attorney general is the only contested statewide GOP primary, as the other two statewide offices up for election this year are held by Republican incumbents.

The two candidates have generally agreed on policy issues, but have taken jabs at each other’s qualifications. Sunday has called himself the “only candidate that has experience working in the courts where the Attorney General’s Office works,” while Williams has touted his own loyalty to the Republican Party and attempted to paint Sunday’s leadership in York County as that of a “progressive Democrat.”

The Pennsylvania Republican Party endorsed Sunday in January — relatively early in the election cycle — while Williams withdrew himself from consideration for the party endorsement.

📖 Dig deeper with these candidate guides:

📺 For your viewing pleasure: Watch the candidates debate here.

This role represents part of Northeast Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The district contains pieces of Rhawnhurst, Fox Chase, Bustleton, and more. It’s currently held by state Rep. Kevin Boyle, a Democrat.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: The Republican Party hopes to flip this seat in November, in a district that’s 59% Democratic and 28% Republican. If that were to happen, it could be a crucial piece in deciding which party controls the Pennsylvania House overall.

Gill and Gushue are competing for the Republican nomination. Gill — who managed Councilmember Brian O’Neill’s reelection campaign last year — has the endorsement of the Philly GOP, and Gushue is running with the support of Sam Oropeza, a former City Council at-large candidate for whom Gushue did campaign work.

🗞️ Candidates in the news:

Pennsylvania’s attorney general is the commonwealth’s top law enforcement official, who is responsible for things like prosecuting organized crime and public corruption, enforcing state tax laws, representing Pennsylvania in legal matters, and protecting consumers. The AG oversees a staff of hundreds and typically serves in four-year terms.

The current attorney general is Michelle Henry, a Democrat appointed to the position after former AG Josh Shapiro became governor. She is not running for election, so the race is wide open.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: While they’ve listed different top priorities, the Democratic AG candidates haven’t shown major differences in opinion on major issues like abortion, public safety, or voting rights. Instead, they’ve tried to differentiate themselves from one another by touting their professional and personal backgrounds.

The Pennsylvania Democratic Party decided not to make an endorsement in the race, but many other groups have made their choice clear.

📖 Dig deeper with these candidate guides:

📺 For your viewing pleasure: You can watch the Democratic candidates debate here. You can also see them participate in the Philadelphia Citizen’s “Ultimate Job Interview” here.

Pennsylvania’s auditor general is the state’s chief fiscal watchdog, whose office’s duties include conducting financial audits and evaluating the performance of government programs. The auditor general serves in four-year terms.

The current auditor general is Tim DeFoor, a Republican. He’s running uncontested in his primary, but two Democrats are vying for the chance to challenge him.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Pinsley has framed himself as the candidate who has extensive experience doing audits that “translate to impact.” Meanwhile, Kenyatta has touted his insider’s view of state government and experience “in the weeds of approving dollars.”

Kenyatta has racked up a substantial list of endorsements, including from the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Pinsley’s endorsements include VoteVets, Parents Medical Rights Group, and Freethought Equality, according to WESA.

There’s been some controversy in the race: in February, a video showing Kenyatta telling somebody that Pinsley doesn’t “like Black people” circulated online. Pinsely denied the accusation, and Kenyatta called the video — which he said was filmed without his knowledge — a “dirty political trick.”

📖 Dig deeper with these candidate guides:

Pennsylvania’s state treasurer is entrusted with managing the commonwealth’s money, including making and receiving payments on PA’s behalf, overseeing state agencies’ deposits and withdrawals, and managing the state’s investments. The state treasurer serves in four-year terms.

The current state treasurer is Stacy Garrity, a Republican. She’s running uncontested in her primary, but two Democrats are competing for the chance to challenge her in November.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: The two Democratic candidates have focused on drawing out their differences in approach, policy, and ideology with the incumbent state treasurer, Garrity. Bizzarro has focused on painting Garrity as an “extremist” and criticizing her record on returning unclaimed property to Pennsylvanians.

Meanwhile, McClelland has called Garrity’s approach to the office “highly politicized” and called for a more “honest broker” as treasurer. McClelland is also a vocal opponent of “Keystone Saves,” a proposed retirement program that Garrity favors.

Bizzarro has managed to pick up more major endorsements than McClelland, including that of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. McClelland’s endorsers, according to WESA, include Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85 and Lehigh Valley For All.

📖 Dig deeper with these candidate guides:

The representative from Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District represents Northwest Philly and parts of West, North, Center City, and South Philly in the U.S. House of Representatives.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Evans is vying for his fifth term representing Philly in Congress. Gordon — a one-term Register of Wills who narrowly lost the Democratic nomination for the office last year — has decided to mount a primary bid against him.

🗞️ Candidates in the news:

This role represents a chunk of West Philly, including Mantua, Mill Creek, and Powelton Village, plus a small piece of Center City near the Franklin Institute, in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: State Rep. Amen Brown, who’s also a former mayoral candidate, is running for his third term in the Pennsylvania House. His two challengers, Green and Blackwell, are both running for the second time. Green has drawn endorsements from progressive groups like the Working Families Party and Reclaim Philadelphia, Blackwell is drawing support from endorsers such as the Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial Board and Sheriff Rochelle Bilal, and Brown has the support of some top House Democrats.

🗞️ Candidates in the news:

🔵 State Representative (172nd District)

This role represents part of Northeast Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The district contains pieces of Rhawnhurst, Fox Chase, Bustleton, and more.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Boyle’s name is on the ballot to run for his eighth term in the PA House. He’ll face a challenger in Dougherty, a former public defender who’s the son of a PA Supreme Court justice and nephew of the former labor leader “Johnny Doc.”

Dougherty jumped into the race after a video of Boyle having an outburst in a bar circulated online a few days before the election filing deadline. Per the Inquirer, Boyle — who’s previously struggled with his mental health — hasn’t been attending House sessions, and Philly’s Democratic House delegation is not supporting his re-election bid.

The day before the primary election, District Attorney Larry Krasner withdrew a warrant for Boyle's arrest that had been issued in mid-April. The warrant had been issued on the grounds that he'd allegedly violated a protection from abuse order, but the DA's office later learned that there was no active protective order against him at the time.

🗞️ Candidates in the news:

🔵 State Representative (181st District)

This official represents a swath of North Philly and a bit of Center City in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The district includes Spring Garden, Poplar, Yorktown, Hartranft, and more.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: In addition to his bid for auditor general, three-term state Rep. Kenyatta is also running for reelection to his current seat. Both of his challengers have made bids for public office before — Nash for Kenyatta’s seat in 2018, and Griffin for an at-large City Council seat last year.

The local Democratic Party removed Nash from his position as a ward leader earlier this year, after comments about LGBTQ people that he made in a ward meeting came to light. Nash has said his remarks have been misinterpreted.

🗞️ Candidates in the news:

🔵 State Representative (188th District)

This person represents much of West Philly — including University City, Cedar Park, and Spruce Hill — in the PA House of Representatives.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Krajewski, a progressive state rep who first won in 2020, is running for a third term. Hey Philly couldn’t locate much information about his challenger, other than a Facebook page where King touts being a “Native Son … NOT a private school grad from NY!”

🗞️ Candidates in the news: Hey Philly couldn’t locate any coverage of this race.

🔵 State Representative (190th District)

This legislator represents pieces of North and West Philly, including Allegheny West, Parkside, and Wynnefield Heights, in the state House of Representatives.

🗳️ Who you’ll see on your ballot:

🥜 The race in a nutshell: Green is vying for her second full term as state representative. Hey Philly couldn’t locate a campaign website for or any info about Jackson, who ran against Green as an independent in 2022, according to the Philadelphia Citizen.

🗞️ Candidates in the news: Hey Philly couldn’t locate any coverage of this race.

In Philly, ballot questions ask voters for approval to amend the city’s Home Rule Charter, AKA Philly’s main governing document.

🗳️ What you’ll see on your ballot: “QUESTION #1 - PROPOSED CHARTER CHANGE 1: Should the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to require the City to provide for the indemnification and defense of registered community organizations in connection with claims made against them arising directly out of their lawful participation in the City’s zoning variance process?”

💬 An explanation: Registered community organizations — known as RCOs, for short — are volunteer neighborhood groups that give community members an avenue to air their thoughts on development happening in their area. They do this in part by reviewing and weighing in on building projects that require zoning variances, or exceptions from the typical zoning rules.

If passed, this amendment would mean that the city would come up with a system to help RCOs pay their legal bills if they’re sued for their participation in the zoning variance process.

Proponents say this financial cushion is necessary for RCOs, because developers have the financial resources to deter opposition by threatening costly lawsuits, which community groups may not have the means to counter.

Opponents argue that the bill could result in a decreased development and a slowdown of the real estate industry, as it could potentially lead to an indefinite appeals process that would eventually kill projects.

City Council unanimously passed a bill last year to put this amendment on the ballot. Former Mayor Jim Kenney, however, did not sign it. Instead, he expressed reservations about the financial and legal practicality of the amendment.

📚 Further reading: