Neysa Nevins, Democratic Committeeperson (22-05), Mount Airy, Philadelphia
The upcoming general election is Tuesday November 3, 2026. View the ballot for ward 22. Register to vote or update registration by October 19. Mail-in ballots are being mailed now and one can request a mail-in or absentee ballot until 5 pm October 27. Return your ballot in the US mail or go to a satellite office or ballot drop-off location.
Your Questions,
Answered
What do I need to know for the November 3, 2026 general election?
The last day to register or update your registration is October 19 and to request a mail-in or absentee ballot is October 27. If you plan to return your ballot via US mail request as soon as possible. Check your voter registration status to make sure you are still registered and/or find out if your polling place has changed. Here is a comprehensive list of links for voting in Philadelphia.
In this election, the Democrats running are Josh Shapiro (PA Governor), Austin Davis (PA Lt. Governor), Chris Rabb (US Congressional District #3), Art Haywood (PA State Senator District #4), and Chris Johnson (PA State Representative in House District #200). We need a strong Philly turnout to help Shapiro and Davis win the governors races and elect our Democratic US and State representatives! There are two ballot questions as well.
The role of committeeperson is a volunteer elected position. We help our neighbors register to vote, provide information about candidates and endorsements, and help answer election questions. We can also help connect people to Philadelphia city services and help answer local questions. Ward 22 elected 58 committeepeople serving its 29 divisions.
What does a committeeperson do?
What is the Philadelphia Ward System and the Democratic City Committee?
Philadelphia is divided into 66 wards, and each ward is divided into divisions for a total of 1703 divisions. Three wards (39, 40, 66) are split into “A” and “B” due to their size.
What is the Ward Executive Committee?
Each ward has a Ward Executive Committee and voters elect its members, committeepeople, to serve for 4 year terms. Each division has up to 2 committeepeople. Democrats and Republicans have their own Ward Executive Commmittees.
The 3rd Monday after the primary (June 8 this year), elected committeepeople gather for a reorganization meeting to elect their next ward leader, who does not need to be an elected committeeperson but should live in the ward. There are 69 ward leaders, as the three A/B split wards have two ward leaders. The Ward 22 leader is currently Councilwoman Cindy Bass, who has been serving in this role since 2018. In the 2026 ward leader election, Bass held a voice vote and declared herself the winner. The Democratic City Committee ordered a redo of the election, which ended in a tie. A power sharing agreement was reached where Bass would remain ward leader, her challenger Octavius Price would be ward chair, and ward committee leadership would be shared.
The way ward leaders run their ward committees varies from ward to ward. Ideally ward leaders hold regular meetings with committeepeople to discuss getting out the vote and candidate recommendations.
What is the Democratic City Committee?
Ward leaders meet together to recommend citywide candidate endorsements for the sample ballots handed out on election day. I’ve seen some refer to the Democratic City Committee as only the ward leaders, while others include the committeepeople.
What is an “open” ward?
Open wards have more flexibility for what is on the sample ballots recommended by the ward leaders. Ward 22 is currently a closed ward. A group called Mt. Airy Democrats, which includes current and former Ward 22 commmittepeople, formed to advocate for a more open 22nd ward, which I support as well. Note open wards tend to have by-laws, file financial reports each year, form subcommittees including for candidate endorsements, and have more robust get out the vote efforts. In closed wards, ward leaders make ward decisions with minimal input from committeepeople.
For more information see Committee of Seventy’s How the Philadelphia Ward System Works.
Which Democratic wards are open and why does it matter?
Before 2022 only five wards were open: 5, 8, 9, 27, and 30. Then in 2022, another eight wards opened up: 1, 2, 15, 18, 24, 39A, 48, and 51. In 2024, six of the top 15 wards that delivered the most votes for Kamala Harris were open wards. None of the open wards ranked in the bottom third for the number of votes they delivered for Harris in 2024. Open wards deliver more votes for Democratic statewide candidates in general elections. In 2026, three additional wards 25, 31, 46 became open and several others may become open as well.