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Cherelle Parker

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cherelle Parker
100th Mayor of Philadelphia
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2024
Preceded byJim Kenney
Member of the Philadelphia City Council
from the 9th district
In office
January 4, 2016 – September 7, 2022
Preceded byMarian B. Tasco
Succeeded byAnthony Phillips
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 200th district
In office
September 13, 2005 – December 31, 2015
Preceded byLeAnna Washington
Succeeded byTonyelle Cook-Artis
Personal details
Born (1972-09-09) September 9, 1972 (age 52)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Ben Mullins
​
​
(m. 2010, divorced)​
[1]
Children1
Residence(s)Mount Airy, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationLincoln University (BS)
University of Pennsylvania (MPA)
WebsiteCampaign website

Cherelle Lesley Parker (born September 9, 1972)[2] is an American politician who has served as the 100th mayor of Philadelphia since 2024. She is the first woman to hold the office.[3][4]

Parker served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2005 to 2015, representing the 200th district in Northwest Philadelphia. She was elected to represent the ninth district on the Philadelphia City Council in 2015 and re-elected in 2019, serving as majority leader from 2020 to 2022.

In September 2022, Parker resigned from City Council and announced her candidacy in the 2023 Philadelphia mayoral election.[5] She won the Democratic primary in May 2023,[6] going on to defeat Republican David Oh in the general election in November.[7]

Early life and education

[edit]

Parker was born in the Mount Airy neighborhood of Northwest Philadelphia to an unmarried teenage mother. Her mother died when Parker was 11, and she was raised by her grandparents, a disabled U.S. Navy veteran and a domestic worker who both grew up in the South.[8]

In 1990, as a senior at Parkway High School, Parker won a citywide oratorical competition. In winning the competition, she was awarded a cash prize, a trip to Senegal and Morocco, and was introduced to then-Philadelphia City Council member Marian B. Tasco, who hired Parker as an intern.[9]

Parker graduated from Lincoln University in 1994. She is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.[10]

Career

[edit]
Parker in 2016

After graduating from Lincoln University in 1994, Parker worked briefly as a high school English teacher in Pleasantville, New Jersey, and then returned to Tasco's office in 1995, where she did a variety of roles for a decade.[8]

In 2005, Parker ran in a special election to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives to fill an open seat vacated by LeAnna Washington after Washington was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate. Parker won the election, and became the youngest Black woman ever elected to the Pennsylvania General Assembly.[11] She remained in that office for ten years, and for five years was chair of the Philadelphia delegation. In the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, she supported the "Philadelphia Tax Fairness Package", a new and special tax on the purchase of cigarettes, and the Act 75, which in 2012 amended state law to allow expert testimony in sexual assault cases.[8]

Tasco retired from Philadelphia city council in 2015, and encouraged Parker to succeed her.[12] She was supported by the city's Democratic Party, and won. As a member of the Philadelphia City Council, she led the passage of the "Philly First Home" program, which aids first-time home buyers in meeting down payments and closing costs on the purchase of a home.[8]

In January 2020, Parker defeated Bobby Henon to become majority leader for Democrats on the city council.[13] In February 2021, Parker was elected the chair of the board for the Delaware River Port Authority.[14]

2023 Philadelphia mayoral campaign

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Primary election

[edit]
Main article: 2023 Philadelphia mayoral election

On September 7, 2022, Parker resigned from the City Council and announced her candidacy for Mayor of Philadelphia in the 2023 election.[5] Following her resignation, she also registered as a lobbyist in Pennsylvania, and secured Longwood Gardens and Moore College of Art and Design as clients.[15]

In the mayoral campaign primary, Parker ran as a moderate Democrat compared to other more progressive candidates.[16] Her campaign focused on crime and public safety, pledging to hire 300 new police officers and opposing the establishment of a supervised injection site for heroin and other injectable drugs in Philadelphia.[17]

As a Philadelphia City Council member, Parker opposed the police tactic of "stop and frisk", also known as a Terry stop.[18] But during her campaign for mayor, she reversed her position on them, saying, "Terry stops are what I wholeheartedly embrace as a tool that law enforcement needs, to make the public safety of our city their number one priority. It is a legal tool."[19][20]

Polling ahead of the mayoral primary found that Parker was in a statistical tie with Rebecca Rhynhart and Helen Gym.[21] Parker was endorsed by several labor unions and members of the city's political establishment, including former mayoral candidates Maria Quiñones-Sánchez and Derek S. Green.[22] Parker lagged in fundraising behind most of the major candidates.[23] Campaign finance reports showed she and Rhynhart were the only two candidates to raise a majority of their funds from Philadelphia residents.[24]

On May 16, 2023, Parker was declared the winner of the Democratic primary, receiving 32.6% of the vote and defeating her closest opponent by ten percentage points, due to her strong support in Black and low-income neighborhoods in the city.[22]

General election

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Parker faced Republican city council member David Oh in the general election.[11]

For almost a month after securing the Democratic primary, Parker did not campaign, citing complications from an earlier dental root canal procedure.[25] Even after recovering, Parker refused to debate Oh, claiming that the 7 to 1 voter registration advantage the Democrats made any effort to interact with Oh a waste of campaign resources.[26] Jennifer Stefano in The Philadelphia Inquirer called Parker's decision not to debate Oh "Trumpesque" and "a danger to our democracy".[27] Lauren Cristella, president and CEO of the Committee of Seventy, also criticized Parker's refusal to debate Oh, saying it would be the first time in 24 years without a debate between the city's mayoral candidates in the general election.[28][29]

Parker agreed to participate in a joint interview with Oh at the Please Touch Museum, where they took questions from children related to their vision of Philadelphia. Parker said she wishes to see Philadelphia be the "safest, cleanest, and greenest big city in the nation, with economic opportunity for all".[28] Shortly afterwards, Parker reversed her position on debating Oh and agreed to participate in a single debate on October 26 on Philadelphia's Morning News, KYW radio program.[30] As of September 27, Parker had only raised an additional $875,000 in campaign donations compared to her $2.2 million raised during the primary, but she spent roughly twice that of Oh, who raised a total of $467,000.[31]

Parker defeated Oh with 75% of the vote in the general election, which was the lowest showing by a Democrat since John F. Street in the 2003 election.[32]

Mayor of Philadelphia

[edit]
Parker with President Joe Biden, Bob Brady, and Monica Taylor in 2024

Parker's term as mayor began at midnight on January 1, 2024, but she was not formally sworn in until January 2 to avoid conflicting with the Mummers Parade, an annual New Year's Day tradition in Philadelphia.[4] In contrast to her predecessors, her transition team was slow to appoint commissioners for a majority of city agencies, leaving some departments without permanent leadership for over a month into Parker's mayoral term, while others retained appointees from the Jim Kenney administration.[33]

Parker's administration proposed a media policy which required all public statements to be approved by the Mayor's Office of Communications,[34] drawing criticism from many branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia, who warned on the evening before the policy went into effect that it would prevent branches from communicating promptly with patrons about programming and unplanned closures. Staff also cited concerns that the policy could be used to censor print and digital content.[35] After public outcry, the policy was reversed.[36]

Parker ordered a return to full-time, in-person work for city employees by July 15, 2024.[37]

Budget

[edit]

On 14 March, Parker released her proposed city budget for fiscal year 2024–2025. The budget plan proposed increased funding for the police and for city cleaning and greening efforts, as well as an increase in the School District of Philadelphia's share of the real estate tax.[38] Unlike previous mayors, Parker's first budget proposal did not include a major, potentially controversial spending priority.[39] The mayor's office received the largest funding increase of any city department, with its budget growing by 151% and the mayor's direct staff increasing from 39 positions to 113.[40] Parker proposed a $1 million cut to funding for Prevention Point, a harm reduction and syringe exchange organization that operates in Kensington. This proposal was criticized by physicians and public health researchers, with the city's Director of HIV Health saying it would lead to a spike in HIV cases among needle users.[41] The budget cut funding for Vision Zero, an initiative to end traffic deaths,[42] and initially did not include funding needed by the Philadelphia Housing Authority to develop the site of the UC Townhomes, though that funding was later added.[43][44] Tax rates remained flat and two property tax relief programs were expanded, while code enforcement and sanitation programs received budget increases.[45]

Public safety

[edit]

On 11 April, Parker visited Kensington to commemorate her 100th day in office and released her public safety plan for the neighborhood and the city at large.[46] On 8 May, Parker ordered police and municipal workers to clear a large encampment between McPherson Square and Allegheny Ave in Kensington.[47] Witnesses reported sanitation workers using water hoses and leaf blowers to drive people off the streets. Several harm-reduction advocates refused an order by police to disperse. Of around 75 people who were counted living on the block, the Parker administration said 59 were placed in a shelter or treatment since April, with 31 institutionalized after the encampment clearance.[48] On 4 September, 34 people were arrested during another encampment sweep in Kensington. One woman arrested that day, Amanda Cahill, was found dead in her jail cell three days later.[49][50]

Proposed Sixers arena

[edit]

In September 2024, Parker released a statement announcing her support for the proposed 76Place at Market East development, despite objections from neighboring Chinatown and other community groups.[51]

Political positions

[edit]

Education

[edit]

In 2023, Parker supported opening schools for a longer duration of the day and mandatory year-round schooling, arguing that "children are no longer working the farms in summertime".[52] She proposed launching a pilot program, and increasing the allocation of real estate taxes that go toward the Philadelphia School District from 55% to 58% to accommodate for the increased air conditioning costs associated with longer operating hours during the school year.[53][54]

Public safety

[edit]

Parker's platform was described as "tough on crime".[54] Parker opposes supervised injection sites.[55] She supported Terry stops, also known as "constitutional stop-and-frisk", in her mayoral campaign[56] after having previously fought to end them on the Philadelphia City Council, labeling them unconstitutional and discriminatory.[57] In a 2022 op-ed for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Parker pledged to hire 300 additional police officers.[58]

Personal life

[edit]

In 2010, Parker married Ben Mullins, a leader in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.[59] They live in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia, and have a son, Langston, who was named after Langston Hughes.[11][60]

In 2011, Parker was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol after she was stopped for driving the wrong way on a one-way street.[61] She was convicted, and after losing an appeal in 2015, was sentenced to three days in jail, a $1,000 fine, and a one-year driver's license suspension.[62]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ Naskar, Rittwik (November 8, 2023), "Who is Cherelle Parker's husband? Philadelphia elects first female mayor", MEA WorldWide (MEAWW)
  2. ^ "Cherelle L. Parker". PA House of Representatives Archives. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  3. ^ Orso, Anna (May 22, 2023). "Cherelle Parker on becoming the first woman poised to be Philly mayor: 'I didn't get here alone'". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  4. ^ a b Farr, Stephanie (December 29, 2023). "For 36 hours, Philly won't have a sworn-in mayor. Here's how we should mark the rare event". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Orso, Anna; Walsh, Sean Collins (September 7, 2022). "Philly Councilmember Cherelle L. Parker has resigned and will run for mayor". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  6. ^ Orso, Anna; Walsh, Sean Collins (May 17, 2023). "Cherelle Parker won the Democratic nomination for mayor". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  7. ^ Walsh, Sean Collins; Schneiderman, Lauren (November 7, 2023). "Democrat Cherelle Parker will become Philadelphia's first female mayor". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  8. ^ a b c d West, Tony (November 21, 2019). "Cherelle Parker: The Girl Who Found a Home in City Hall". Philadelphia Public Record. Archived from the original on November 23, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. ^ Levy, Jordan (September 7, 2022). "Cherelle Parker resigns: What to know about the Northwest Philly scion planning a run for mayor". Billy Penn.
  10. ^ "Cherelle Parker At a Glance". The Philadelphia Tribune. April 6, 2023. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  11. ^ a b c Griswold, Eliza (November 10, 2023). "Cherelle Parker Defies the Progressive Agenda". The New Yorker. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Bailey, Samaria (February 26, 2015). "State Rep. Parker announces run for City Council". The Philadelphia Tribune.
  13. ^ Collins, Sean (January 6, 2020). "Philadelphia City Council: Cherelle Parker beats Bobby Henon as majority leader". Inquirer.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  14. ^ Marin, Max (February 17, 2021). "Politics power move: Cherelle Parker, expected candidate for Philly mayor, elected DRPA chair". Billy Penn. WHYY. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  15. ^ Walsh, Sean Collins (September 28, 2022). "Mayoral candidate Cherelle Parker became a Harrisburg lobbyist days after resigning from City Council". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  16. ^ Schultz, Brooke (May 15, 2023). "Philadelphia Democratic mayoral primary pits moderates against progressives". Associated Press.
  17. ^ Orso, Anna (May 17, 2023). "A guide to Cherelle Parker: What to know about the person Philly Democrats picked for mayor". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  18. ^ Moselle, Aaron (February 10, 2020). "Councilmember Parker wants Philadelphia voters to weigh in on 'stop and frisk'". WHYY.
  19. ^ Caiola, Sammy (May 30, 2023). "Democratic mayoral nominee Cherelle Parker wants to strengthen police, lean on stops and searches to tackle gun violence". WHYY.
  20. ^ Palmer, Chris (March 16, 2023). "Stop-and-frisk is getting renewed attention in Philly amid a mayor's race focused on crime". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  21. ^ "Philly mayor's race poll results: Statistical tie, with three women in front". Billy Penn. April 28, 2023.
  22. ^ a b Orso, Anna (May 17, 2023). "How Cherelle Parker won the primary: Black voters, a boost from labor, and a personal story of Philly grit". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  23. ^ Shukla, Aseem (June 5, 2023). "The dollars per vote in this year's mayoral election, from $26 for Cherelle Parker to $460 for Allan Domb". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  24. ^ Orso, Anna (April 10, 2023). "Half the money collected by candidates for Philly mayor comes from outside the city". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  25. ^ Snyder, Dan (May 22, 2023). "David Oh believes he's the GOP's best candidate in decades". CBS. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  26. ^ Hawkins, Niki (August 28, 2023). "Philadelphia Mayor's Race: To debate or not to debate is the question for David Oh, Cherelle Parker". WPVI-TV. ABC. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  27. ^ Stefano, Jennifer (August 28, 2023). "Why Cherelle Parker should debate David Oh". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  28. ^ a b Snyder, Dan (October 17, 2023). "Philadelphians mayor candidates Cherelle Parker, David Oh take questions from kids at Please Touch Museum". CBS. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  29. ^ Roth, Fallon (August 22, 2023). "Cherelle Parker is declining to debate David Oh. That's not the norm". billypenn.com. WHYY-FM. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  30. ^ Chang, David (October 9, 2023). "Cherelle Parker and David Oh to face off in Philly mayoral debate". WCAU. NBC. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  31. ^ Walsh, Sean Collins; Shukla, Aseem (September 27, 2023). "How much money have mayoral candidates Cherelle Parker and David Oh raised?". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  32. ^ "Local Elections". WPVI. November 7, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  33. ^ Orso, Anna; Collins Walsh, Sean (February 5, 2024). "Mayor Cherelle Parker just made 10 appointments, but some top jobs remain up in the air a month into her tenure". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  34. ^ Terruso, Julia; Orso, Anna; Marin, Max (January 26, 2024). "Mayor Parker's office has a new policy: All public statements go through us". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  35. ^ Marin, Max (February 6, 2024). "Mayor Parker's social media crackdown ruffles feathers with librarians". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  36. ^ Fiorillo, Victor (February 7, 2024). "Philly Today: Mayor's Office Learns Not to Mess with Librarians". Philadelphia Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
  37. ^ "Back to the office: Mayor Parker ends work-from-home for thousands of city workers". WHYY. May 20, 2024.
  38. ^ "Cherelle Parker's $6.29 billion budget – by the numbers". City & State PA. March 14, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  39. ^ Walsh, Sean Collins (March 18, 2024). "Did Mayor Cherelle Parker waste political capital with her first budget proposal? It's complicated, insiders say". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  40. ^ Orso, Anna; Collins Walsh, Sean (March 25, 2024). "Mayor Parker's own office got the biggest funding boost in her budget proposal". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  41. ^ Whelan, Aubrey; Orso, Anna (April 15, 2024). "Mayor Parker proposes cutting nearly $1 million in syringe exchange funding for Prevention Point". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  42. ^ Fitzgerald, Thomas (May 10, 2024). "Mayor Parker's budget slashes funding for Vision Zero, a program designed to end traffic deaths". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  43. ^ "Philly budget proposal includes funding to replace units lost at UC Townhomes site". WHYY. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  44. ^ "Parker's budget proposal puts West Philly affordable housing project in limbo". WHYY. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  45. ^ Collins Walsh, Sean (June 6, 2024). "Council green-lights Mayor Cherelle Parker's budget plans, including $100 million for a Northeast Philly drug rehab center". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  46. ^ Snyder, Dan; Kuhn, Casey (April 11, 2024). "Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker visits Kensington, shares plan for improving public safety, quality of life on 100th day - CBS Philadelphia". CBS News. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  47. ^ Whelan, Aubrey (May 8, 2024). "Philly police and city workers dismantled a Kensington encampment Wednesday". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  48. ^ Whelan, Aubrey (May 14, 2024). "Mayor Parker's administration and advocates say a tense encounter threw off Kensington encampment clearing". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  49. ^ Melamed, Samantha; Rushing, Ellie; Orso, Anna (September 8, 2024). "A 31-year-old woman arrested during a Kensington sweep last week died in jail days later". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
  50. ^ "Women inside Philly jail banged on cells for hours before Amanda Cahill died, "reiterating her calls for help"". Kensington Voice. September 16, 2024. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
  51. ^ "Philadelphia mayor strikes a deal with the 76ers to build a new arena downtown". AP News. September 18, 2024. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
  52. ^ Fiorillo, Victor (May 11, 2023). "Philly Today: Cherelle Parker Wants Mandated Year-Round School". Philly Mag. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  53. ^ Mcilwain, Kaleah (May 9, 2023). "Philly Mayoral Candidate Cherelle Parker Wants Year-Round Schooling for Students". NBC News 10 Philadelphia. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  54. ^ a b Walsh, Sean Collins; Orso, Anna (May 17, 2023). "A guide to Cherelle Parker: What to know about the person Philly Democrats just picked for mayor". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  55. ^ Giordano, Dom (December 14, 2022). "Mayoral Candidate Cherelle Parker: No Safe Injection Sites for Philadelphia!". Audacy. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  56. ^ Orso, Anna (April 19, 2023). "Setting the record straight on stop-and-frisk in Philadelphia". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  57. ^ Schultz, Brooke (May 12, 2023). "Philadelphia mayoral race homes in on crime policies". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  58. ^ Parker, Cherelle L. (March 24, 2022). "300 new community police officers could help stem Philly's pervasive violence | Opinion". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  59. ^ "Cherelle and Ben's diamond wedding". August 8, 2010.
  60. ^ Williams, Stephen (April 7, 2023). "Mayoral candidate Cherelle Parker building diverse coalition to win". The Philadelphia Tribune.
  61. ^ Gambacorta, David (May 6, 2011). "State Rep. Parker arrested on DUI charge". inquirer.com.
  62. ^ "Rep. Cherelle Parker's DUI sentence upheld". Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cherelle Parker.
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 200th district
2005–2015 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Philadelphia
2024–present 		Incumbent
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