It was refreshing to see primary voters in two Philadelphia legislative districts say no to politics as usual by rejecting an old-guard Democratic House member and turning away a newcomer who pinned her hopes on being the namesake daughter of the man who had held that office.
The apparent defeat in the 182d District of State Rep. Babette Josephs, 71, not only paves the way for the election of Pennsylvania’s first openly gay state lawmaker, but also served as savvy Center City voters’ rejection of unsavory — not to mention silly — campaign tactics.
A weird Josephs flyer warned that 33-year-old lawyer Brian Sims “says he will work with Harrisburg Republicans.” Horror of horrors, the Josephs camp concluded, Sims’ nod toward bipartisanship would result in disenfranchised minorities, cuts to schools, and “mandatory ultrasounds before abortion.”
