No Cash for Philadelphia Poll Workers

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In Philadelphia, there's a long history of paying so-called street money on election day. Campaigns pay some of the party faithful to help get out the vote. But for the Pennsylvania primary next week, both Democratic presidential candidates are bucking the tradition.

From member station WHYY, Susan Phillips reports.

SUSAN PHILLIPS: At Philadelphia's annual Democratic Party fundraising dinner last night, hundreds of party activists, elected officials, and the city's 69 ward leaders spent up to $2,500 each to eat cheesesteaks and hear themselves praised by presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

But these same folks won't be feeling any brotherly love in the form of cash when Pennsylvania votes a week from today — at least not from these two candidates. The city's Democratic city committee is not endorsing either Clinton or Obama, and neither one is coughing up the dollars that usually help poll workers buy food or find babysitters or go home with some compensation for an election day's work.

Ward leader Greg Palmer says this will make it harder to get the vote out.

Mr. GREG PALMER (Ward Leader; Blogger, Keystone Politics): We can't remind them that this is elections day, and the polls open here and they close here and you've got to be there and got to vote at your polling place. You know, new voters are like rookies. Rookies need a little direction; that's what committee people and ward leaders do. That's what with do with the street now.

PHILLIPS: Palmer says the lack of poll workers will hurt the campaign, but others disagree. City councilwoman and leader of the 50th Ward, Marian Tasco says the presidential race gets so much media attention that party workers won't make much of a difference.

Ms. MARIAN TASCO (Ward Leader, Northwest Philadelphia's 50th Ward): The voters are very excited about this election. And you have people who are avidly for Hillary Clinton, and those who are avidly and emotionally connected to Barack Obama. And they will come out and vote regardless.

PHILLIPS: That sentiment is echoed by Obama's campaign spokesman Sean Smith, who asks why pay for what you can get for free.

Mr. SEAN SMITH (Spokesman, Barack Obama's Pennsylvania Campaign): And it's a tradition in Philadelphia, and it's something that they're used to having campaigns do. And, you know, we have great respect for the ward leaders in the community, but you know, it's just something that we don't need to do.

PHILLIPS: Obama's campaign has spent an unprecedented amount of money in Philadelphia's media market that spread some resentment among people like former ward leader and former city councilman Ed Schwartz, who says some of that money should be shared with struggling Philadelphians.

Mr. ED SCHWARTZ (Founder; President, Institute for the Study of Civic Values, Philadelphia): People feel that if a candidate is willing to put millions of dollars for a two-second ad on the evening news at 11 o'clock, they ought to be willing to spend $100 for somebody to spend the day and then before that and after to really trying to get the vote out. It's a (unintelligible).

PHILLIPS: Over at the Clinton campaign, the main local ally is Governor Ed Rendell, who says Clinton simply doesn't have money to give out. But even if the candidate say no, city councilwoman Marian Tasco says this tradition will not die easily.

Ms. TASCO: Our party chair, Bob Brady, is resourceful and a smart party leader, so I think Bob knows and understands the process. He wouldn't be in office as long as he is if he doesn't know how to take care of his people.

PHILLIPS: And that was exactly what Congressman Brady was doing at the party fundraiser last night.

Representative BOB BRADY (Democrat, Texas): We're raising our money. We're going to raise real money and make sure that our committee people have what they need, the resource they need to get the job done.

PHILLIPS: Brady has said he plans to give his ward leaders enough, so that each of their 1,700 divisions citywide would get about $200. That works out to about a third of a million dollars, which should be enough to motivate.

For NPR News, I'm Susan Phillips in Philadelphia.

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