Second chance
for Evans

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Dwight Evans is widely hailed as someone who has helped Philadelphia in various ways in his role as one of the most powerful members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
Evans, elected in 1980, has tried to use his accomplishments to seek higher office, but bids for lieutenant governor, governor and mayor failed.
Eight years after an unsuccessful run at City Hall, Evans is back. He’s willing to trade his post as chairman of the Appropriations Committee for the job of running city government.
On the campaign trail, he repeatedly mentions that he "carried the water" on issues such as construction of the Pennsylvania Convention Center and reform of the Philadelphia Police Department and School District of Philadelphia.
"I just don’t talk about it," he said. "I do it."
If polls are to be believed, Evans is going to finish fifth in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, ahead of only long shots Queena Bass and Jesus White. That would be a repeat of 1999, when he finished a distant fifth, ahead of only Bass. Analysts believe he has not communicated his message effectively with voters.
Evans, who turns 53 the day after the primary, has a lot of strong support in Northwest Philadelphia, which is the base of his 203rd Legislative District. He also represents Crescentville, Lawndale and Summerdale in the state House.
Bob Brady has the support of all but one Northeast Democratic ward leader, with Tom Knox also expected to do well in the area. Evans is backed by his House colleague and fellow Appropriations Committee member, Mike McGeehan, leader of the 41st Ward.
State Reps. Mark Cohen and Tony Payton, state Sen. Shirley Kitchen and City Councilwoman Marian Tasco — all of whom represent part of the Northeast — are also in his camp.
While Chaka Fattah and Michael Nutter have done little campaigning in the Northeast, Evans has made a big effort to reach the voters. He addressed Philadelphia Academy Charter High School students the day he announced his candidacy, recently greeted merchants and shoppers on Frankford Avenue and on Saturday said hello to customers at a half-dozen local supermarkets.
Evans has been endorsed by the Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity, Transport Workers Local 234, Laborers Local 332, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776 and the Guardian Civic League.
If elected, Evans believes he will have no trouble on city budget issues since he’s been a key player in crafting a much larger state budget. For good measure, he vows to eliminate certain unspecified city offices.
As Evans campaigns, he stresses the crime issue. He wants to bring back former Police Commissioner John Timoney, now chief of police in Miami.
Evans likens the city to a table that needs four strong legs to stand. In the case of crime and safety, those four legs are hiring 500 more police officers, closely supervising parolees, bringing accountability and achievement to schools and encouraging parents and communities to teach children right from wrong.
"All four legs need to be strong to make Philadelphia the city we deserve," he said.
Lately, Evans has been touting comments by Gov. Ed Rendell, a former Philadelphia mayor, that he is the "most qualified" of all the candidates.
In an effort to derail a couple of his opponents, Evans has questioned Knox’s experience on crime issues and labeled Fattah’s ambitious plan to fund programs by leasing Philadelphia International Airport as "fuzzy math."
Evans, who voted for the infamous legislative pay raise in 2005, is a strong supporter of charter schools and the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC), which helps parents of private school students pay tuition. He thinks all parents should have a choice to where to send their children.
"That’s the American way," he said. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com