2003 Philadelphia mayoral election

2003 Philadelphia mayoral election

← 1999 November 4, 2003 2007 →
Turnout50%[1] Increase 5 pp
 
Nominee John F. Street Sam Katz
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 267,230 189,357
Percentage 58.34% 41.34%

Results by ward
Street:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Katz:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Mayor before election

John F. Street
Democratic

Elected mayor

John F. Street
Democratic

The 2003 Philadelphia mayoral election was a contest between Democratic incumbent John F. Street and Republican businessman Sam Katz.

Pennsylvania governor and former mayor of Philadelphia Ed Rendell played a key role for Street by ensuring that business interests did not support Katz.[2]

The race was covered in the documentary film The Shame of a City. This was the last election prior to the 2019 election that saw a Republican nominee carry a ward, with Katz carrying several.

  1. ^ Denvir, Daniel (May 22, 2015). "Voter Turnout in U.S. Mayoral Elections Is Pathetic, But It Wasn't Always This Way". City Lab. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  2. ^ "The PA Report "Power 75" List" (PDF). Pennsylvania Report. Capital Growth, Inc. January 31, 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2006. "Governor Rendell's squeezing business not to support Republican nominee, Sam Katz, will help"