Two abandon race for Council seats

Two Republicans previously expected to run for City Council at-large seats had withdrawn themselves from the race by last week's candidacy filing deadline. Thacher Longstreth and Penn alumnus Sean Reilly are no longer in the running, leaving only the five candidates publically endorsed by the Philadelphia Republican City Committee. Longstreth, a Philadelphia institution who has held the Republican at-large seat on City Council continuously since 1984, has garnered extensive attention in the last week. Allegations that his fiancee and chief of staff Melanie Hopkins had been physically and mentally abusive put him temporarily in the custody of the state of Florida, where the couple was staying while Hopkins cared for her ailing ex-husband. Longstreth contracted pneumonia and ended up in the hospital where nurses filed the charges against Hopkins for alleged abuse last week. Longstreth was recently released from the hospital and is currently in a Florida temporary care facility. From the outset, much controversy has surrounded the matter of whether the 82-year-old Longstreth, who suffers from Parkinson's Disease and dementia, would attempt another run for office. Questions as to whether or not he could fulfill his duties arose, as he often sits staring vacantly at weekly council meetings, seemingly unaware of what is taking place around him. According to Holly Maher, Longstreth's executive assistant, who would not comment on the situation with Hopkins, Longstreth "was going to run, but... decided not to seek another term." Maher cited the Republican Party's decision not to endorse him as Longstreth's sole reason for backing out, asserting that health concerns were not a factor in his decision. Neither Longstreth nor Reilly received endorsements from the party, and while Longstreth decided not to run on account of the hindrance this presented, until last week it appeared that Reilly was ready to go full steam ahead. Reilly announced the suspension of his campaign on March 11. Noting in a public statement that he has "never been one to shy away from a fight," Reilly explained that he is deferring to "a more important fight... to elect Sam Katz mayor." Expressing confidence that his campaign team was headed for victory, Reilly stated that "as a Republican and a team player, I have decided to instead invest my energies into ensuring a Katz victory." He did not cite reasons in his statement to account for his sudden change of heart. "A contested primary battle would take away focus and scarce resources from where they belong, on recapturing City Hall for the Republican Party for the first time in fifty years," Reilly said in his statement. Reilly urged his supporters to rally behind the endorsed Republican slate for the City Council's at-large race -- current Councilman Frank Rizzo Jr., James McDermott Jr., Jack Kelly, David Hardy and David Oh. He specifically singled out Rizzo and McDermott. Longstreth has not made any comment urging his constituency one way or the other.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.