The race, which had largely gone under the radar nationally, had emerged as a priority for the Democratic Party’s left wing, part of a larger trend of progressives rallying behind candidates vowing to be louder, bolder, and more willing to confront their own party.
Pennsylvania’s third congressional district is the most Democratic in the country, supporting Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election by a margin of 78 points. No Republican filed to run, all but guaranteeing Rabb’s victory in November. For the last 40 years, it’s been represented by two members of established political factions in the city: retiring U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans, elected in 2016, hailed from the powerful Northwest Coalition, and before him Chaka Fattah, a South Philadelphian, held the seat for 21 years before he resigned following a racketeering conviction.
Two more moderate candidates, state senator Sharif Street and pediatric surgeon Ala Stanford, split votes and struggled to catch fire. Street’s loss was particularly revealing, given he’s the sort of candidate that may have cruised to higher office just a few years ago. The son of former Philadelphia Mayor John Street, Street had a long list of labor and local political endorsements, including Mayor Cherelle Parker. He formerly led the Pennsylvania state party—a designation that may have hurt more than it helped as the state flipped back to President Donald Trump in 2024. Few national moderates lined up behind him, save for New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker.
Before joining the state legislature, Rabb, 56, taught social entrepreneurship at Temple University's Business School and prior to that worked as a legislative aide in the Clinton Administration focusing on small businesses. His paternal grandfather was a civil rights activist and his maternal great-great-grandfather was born enslaved, fought for the Union in the Civil War, and later founded an African American newspaper in Baltimore.
Lee, for her part, tells TIME that Democrats need to foster more vocal pushback against the GOP and from within the party. “We’re actually not a strong party when we’re all shaking our heads, nodding yes.” She says Rabb’s success demonstrated a rejection of the status quo. “Right now, all over the country, Democratic voters of all different types of backgrounds are finding themselves answering the question, Is this the best we can get? … As authoritarianism runs roughshod over our country, people are starting to say, ‘This is not where I want to plant my flag,’ and wondering: if Republicans and MAGA are willing to fight this hard, why can’t they?”
State senator Nikil Saval, a Rabb backer, thought Rabb’s distinction on Gaza helped him stand out to voters who were given three candidates with mostly similar policy agendas. All three candidates supported a Medicare for All-style healthcare program, and abolishing the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. “People draw very clearly the connection between the wars and the decrepitude of our local wealthfare state,” Saval said. “Cutting taxes for billionaires, endless money for war, and yet somehow we can't pay for Medicaid and SNAP.”
Philadelphia’s a blue bastion but one that’s still home to a wide variety of Democrats. Rabb had stressed building a coalition beyond the progressive movement. Results late Tuesday showed him beating his two opponents by double digits, with support across the district. “He picked off the kind of Democrats who watched the 2024 election, thought it was very bad,” Gavio, of Working Families, said, “and who wanted to see the party working harder to win people’s votes and deliver for working people.”
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