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Preview: District 8, Philly Council

By Tom Mulkeen, Contributing Writer

Seven candidates are running to replace Donna Reed Miller, a four term incumbent. Miller has recently been in the news recently for ethical problems stemming from her endorsement of Verna Tyner, former Chief of Staff to Councilman Bill Greenlee, who is one of the seven running to replace her.  A spokesman for Tyner called the problem a Council issue that was unrelated to the Tyner campaign.  The winner on Tuesday will be the next City Council member from the 8th district because there is no Republican running.

Cindy Bass

Cindy Bass, a longtime aide to U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah was also in the news over the weekend because of the late endorsement she received from former Governor Rendell.  Bass is the favorite in the race because of her name recognition and experience from running in 2007 along with her numerous endorsements from Mayor Nutter, District Attorney Seth Williams, and several high-profile unions.

Tyner is well-known, particularly in the southern part of the Northwest Philly district, which will be helpful in a crowded field.  William Durham, Andrew Lofton, and Greg Paulmier are all local community activists who have been very active in local politics, but lack the city-wide connections of Bass and Tyner.

Howard Treatman is a real estate developer in Germantown who has put $300,000 of his own money into the race by some estimates, which could make a big difference in what is expected to be a low turnout election because of the lack of a seriously contested mayoral race. He’s apparently putting it to use. WHYY Newsworks’ Dave Davies reports seeing an ad attacking Bass, paid for by Treatman, on ESPN last night.

Robin Tasco is a former staffer for the powerful local electricians’ union run by John Dougherty who is related by marriage to current council member Marian Tasco according to the Daily News.

Marian Tasco is next in line to become Council President in January after Anne Verna retires.  Interestingly, Robin has refused to endorse Marian for President because of Marian’s involvement with the DROP pension program.  Marian is one of two Council members involved with DROP who are running for reelection and is facing opposition in her primary, but is expected to win easily.

The debate between the candidates was focused on education and creating jobs according to the Chestnut Hill Local and specifically the recent controversy at Martin Luther King High School, which is a charter school.  All of the candidates stressed that returning control of education to the city from the state was crucial, although Tyner and Lofton wanted to fix some of the current education problems in the city first before taking control back.

Bass had about $124,700 on hand as of last week according to the Inquirer, easily the most of any candidate although Treatman does have the ability to spend more of his personal money.

The turnout in Tioga and Nicetown should be watched to see if Tyner can remain competitive with Bass who should run well in Germantown and Mt. Airy due to her name recognition and the popularity of Chaka Fattah.  Treatman will have to make gains in his native Germantown for him to have a chance.  Durham and Paulmier both hail from Germantown as well so the same could be said for them.

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