Decision 2023

Poll: Top Democratic Mayoral Candidates in Dead Heat

Less than a week before the election, a recent poll found a four-way statistical tie for the city's highest office

NBC Universal, Inc.

In the final weekend before the primary election for Philadelphia mayor, the leading candidates appear to be in a statistical tie, according to a new poll released Friday.

“It’s about a four-way race for the next mayor of Philadelphia,” said Camille Mumford, director of communications for Emerson College Polling, which conducted the poll.

The poll, which was conducted May 7-9, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percent, putting four Democrats within striking distance of the win.

The poll found former councilmember Helen Gym with the most votes at 20.5 percent, followed by former councilmember Cherelle Parker at 18.2 percent, former city controller Rebecca Rhynhart with 17.7 percent and real estate developer and former councilmember Allan Domb with 13.6 percent. Grocer Jeff Brown is slightly below that crowd with 10.4 percent. Other candidates had less than 5 percent.

More than 15 percent of voters said they were undecided about who to support. Of those voters, the biggest grouping said they were leaning toward Domb. Parker and Rhynhart had the next highest amounts of those leaning toward them.

“I probably will be one down to the last minute,” said Terry Ledwell, a voter from Mayfair.

Ledwell said he’s undecided heading into the final weekend.

“My two big issues are going to be crime – of course the violence – and jobs. That’s really what it’s going to come down to,” Ledwell said.

Crime was the top issue for voters in the poll conducted by Emerson College Polling, with nearly 46 percent of respondents saying that was the issue most important to them in determining who to vote for in the mayoral race. Parker, followed by Domb and Rhynhart were the top candidates who respondents said they trusted the most to handle crime in Philadelphia.

On other issues, Rhynhart (a former city controller, treasurer and budget director) got the highest numbers when it comes to who voters trust to handle city finances, and Gym (a former teacher who has the endorsement of the teacher’s union) got the biggest amount of support from respondents when it comes to who they trust most to handle education.

Mumford said right now, it’s a “toss up” between the top four candidates – and that who shows up to vote will be the deciding factor.

“It’s 100 percent a turnout game on Tuesday,” Mumford said.

Contact Us