(Note: The Political Report Card series appears periodically in the Times, with each installment focusing on the activities of an area elected official.
The subject of today’s profile is City Councilman Richard Mariano (D-7th dist.).
The information in this report combines the resources of the Northeast Times and Hall Watch (www.hall watch.org), a non-profit, political watchdog Web site.)

Some folks might call City Councilman Richard Mariano (D-7th dist.) the running joke of Philadelphia politics. One weekly paper in recent months even wondered in print if he is the “dumbest member” of City Council, declaring him “Councilman Duh?” in a headline.
Granted, Mariano sometimes suffers from foot-in-mouth disease because he is guilty of recklessly choosing his words. But to dismiss him, and his political clout, due to some public gaffes is just foolish.
He beat the odds in 1999 when he won re-election in a district that had not re-elected its Council member in 20 years.
And Mariano’s backing by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union Local 98 business manager John J. Dougherty, whose political power in Philadelphia seems to grow with each passing minute, only strengthens his position in the local political landscape.
In fact, according to 2001 campaign finance data, nearly half of the campaign contributions that Mariano received came from union donors, with $10,000 alone coming from IBEW Local 98. (See graph.)
Dougherty also serves as the local Democratic Party treasurer and is a major supporter of Mayor John F. Street. That connection, combined with the rapport Street and Mariano have from their days together on Council, makes Mariano a formidable foe to enemies and a powerful lobbyist for his district because he has the ear of the administration.
During his first term, Mariano secured more than $5 million for improvements to city recreation facilities in his district and pushed for construction of a recreation/senior center in Rhawnhurst that will be built at Bustleton and Solly avenues.
For proof positive of his bond with the mayor, consider this: Mariano and Councilman Darrell Clarke (Street’s handpicked successor in the 5th Councilmanic District, which includes portions of North Philadelphia and Center City) last summer were named co-chairs of the mayor’s auto-insurance rates task force. Somebody who isn’t in the mayor’s good graces doesn’t get that nod.
It is Mariano’s indefatigable attitude, union connections and his image as a no-nonsense, blue-collar guy that endears the lawmaker to his constituent base. He has made news equally for his legislative efforts and his citizen justice crusades — the councilman has chased prostitutes on a bicycle, caught a would-be robber on his Harley, wrestled a car thief to the ground at gunpoint, and, along with his son Vince, helped police track a man who was illegally selling law enforcement badges on the Internet.
The 7th Councilmanic District includes Rhawnhurst, Castor Gardens, a portion of lower Bustleton, Bell’s Corner, Juniata Park, Kensington and Frankford.
It was during the Council redistricting process earlier this year that one of Mariano’s well-known personal tiffs became front-page news.
At issue were several Democrat-leaning divisions in East Frankford. Councilman Frank DiCicco (D-1st dist.) wanted them, but Mariano refused to concede them, saying that they represented a chunk of his voting power base.
Before the dispute was over, DiCicco, an ally of avowed Dougherty foe, state Sen. Vincent Fumo, claimed that Mariano made ethnic slurs against Irish-Americans. The South Philadelphia Democrat even took a lie detector test to prove it. Mariano denied that he ever made the statements but refused to submit to a polygraph.
Other Council members — including at-large members David Cohen and Angel Ortiz — have in the past accused Mariano of uttering anti-Semitic and anti-Puerto Rican remarks.
And his relations with other lawmakers, past and present, haven’t always been rosy either. He formerly served on the staff of Councilman Jim Kenney (D-at-large), who is a Fumo ally, and as the chief of staff for former Councilman Daniel P. McElhatton, whom Mariano unseated in a bitter 1995 Democratic primary with the assistance of both Fumo and Dougherty.
Mariano also took heat following the 1999 election when a local television station reported that Mariano had staff members deliver cookies for his former wife’s bakery.
More recently, on Nov. 21, Council approved the purchase of a 1.4-acre piece of city land by a man who four years ago pleaded guilty to stealing $773,000 in state sales tax collected through a beer distributor business he owned.
Reinaldo Pastrana, the buyer, asked Mariano to support his plan. The councilman obliged, introducing the legislation that cleared the way for the sale. Predictably, only DiCicco voted against the sale.
Mariano, a Juniata Park native who still lives in that neighborhood with his second wife and youngest son, joined IBEW Local 98 as an apprentice in 1978. He worked his way up the union ladder, ultimately ascending to the position of political liaison before entering political life.
As a member of Council, Mariano chairs the Licenses and Inspections Committee, is vice chairman of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Committee and sits on the following committees: Law and Government, Appropriations, Streets and Services, Transportation and Public Utilities and Health and Human Services. ••