Specter wants NE Dems
to make the switch

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Why was U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, who isn’t up for re-election until 2010, knocking on doors in West Mayfair on a hot Saturday morning?
Specter explained that he is troubled by the sharp drop in the number of registered Republicans in Philadelphia over the last decade.
In 1998, there were 200,457 Philadelphians registered with the GOP. That figure has declined steadily, except for the presidential years of 2000 and 2004. Today, there are just 154,508 Republican voters in the city.
"We need to revitalize the party," Specter said.
Specter, a 77-year-old East Falls resident who is in his fifth term in the Senate, was joined by state Rep. John Perzel (R-172nd dist.), Republican mayoral nominee Al Taubenberger and Chris Vogler, GOP leader of the 55th Ward.
The group greeted residents of the 3200 and 3300 blocks of Englewood St. and the 3300 block of Wellington St. Most folks gave them a nice reception, with one man remembering that Specter made the commencement address at his graduation from Father Judge High School in 1969 and a woman recalling eating delicious pies made by the senator’s wife Joan, a former city councilwoman.
The officials and their entourage carried voter registration forms and campaign lawn signs for Taubenberger, who faces Democrat Michael Nutter in the general election.
Some neighbors agreed to switch their party affiliation from Democrat to Republican, though others refused.
"Nope. I’m voting for Nutter," said one woman as she carried Shop-Rite grocery bags into her house.
Another woman expressed support for Specter and Taubenberger but refused to become a Republican because she does not like President George W. Bush.
"The man has totally ruined the country," she said.
The Republicans pitched voters with the idea that the long-ruling Democratic Party in Philadelphia needs competition.
Perzel blames local Democrats for the city’s poor services, high taxes, violent crime and insufficient police manpower.
"They haven’t addressed those issues in fifty years," he said.
Specter recalls a time when Republicans ruled Philadelphia. That ended when Democrat Joseph Clark assumed the mayor’s office in 1952. Republicans have lost every mayoral race since then, though Specter came close to winning in 1967.
The last Republican to win a citywide race was Ron Castille, elected district attorney in 1985 and re-elected in ’89. Specter is also a former district attorney, elected in 1965 and re-elected four years later.
"That’s when the city was safe," he said.
Perzel and Specter are heading a committee to boost Republican voter registration across the city. Before knocking on doors, they addressed ward leaders and activists at Cannstatter’s, challenging them in no uncertain terms to bring voters to the party. After the neighborhood canvas, they greeted patrons at Mayfair Diner and talked strategy.
The Republican leaders want to recruit more young people to the party, develop an effective message and raise money.
They are targeting all Democrats to join the GOP, especially the 7,110 former Republicans who switched parties to vote in the Democratic mayoral primary.
Taubenberger believes Philadelphians, especially those in working-class communities such as West Mayfair, should consider the Republican Party.
"We are the party of less government, less taxes and more efficient use of taxes. And, we have a more conservative approach to family values," he said. "The Republican Party has served Northeast Philadelphia well over the years."
Specter is leading similar voter outreaches across Pennsylvania, with Philadelphia offering the most potential because it has almost 750,000 Democrats.
"This is my hometown, and I’m going to make a special effort here," he said.
The work could help Specter if he faces a primary challenge in three years. In 2004, he nearly lost to ultra-conservative Pat Toomey, then a congressman, in the primary.
A more immediate concern is next year’s presidential election. Democrats have won Pennsylvania’s electoral votes in the last four presidential races, thanks to huge margins in Philadelphia and growing strength in Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties.
"If Pennsylvania is going to be a competitive state, we have to carry the four suburban counties, and Philadelphia can’t be such a drag," Specter said. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com