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The Democratic Party in Our Neighborhood
What is Ward 48?
What is Division 20?
What is a Committee Person?
What do Committee People Do?
Who are My Committee People?
The Democratic Party in Our Neighborhood
‘Ward 48-Division 20’ is the voting jurisdiction for registered Democratic Party members living on the following city streets and blocks in South Philadelphia (See also the blue outline on the map above): the western side of the 1800 block of S Broad, the 1800 blocks of S. Rosewood, S. Carlisle, S 15th Street, S Mole St, and S. Hicks streets, and the eastern side of the 1800 block of S. 16th Street, along with the 1400 and 1500 blocks of both Moore and Mifflin Streets.
What is Ward 48?
For voting purposes, the City of Philadelphia is broken down into 66 geographical regions called ‘wards‘. The Ward system organizes just over 796,000 Democratic-registered voters into a framework for grassroots, or community level politics. We are in the area of the city designated as the 48th Ward (out of 66 total wards).
What is Division 20?
Each ward is further broken down into somewhere between 11 and 51 ‘divisions‘ (or voting districts) each of which has its own polling place. All together across the city there are 1,686 divisions (or polling locations) in the city. These divisions are the smallest political units of the city. By law, each division is required to contain no fewer than 100 and no more than 1,200 registered voters. We are in Division 20 out of 23 total divisions in the 48th Ward.
- To see a map of all the wards and divisions in Philadelphia go here…
What is a Committee Person?
Every four years, Democratic voting neighbors in each Division elect up to two Committee People to represent the interests of their neighborhood within the political system. The Committee Person role is the lowest level, volunteer position in the Democratic Party.
Committee people are the backbone of the Democratic Party and the face of the Party in the neighborhood. Their duties are election-related: to register Democratic voters in the neighborhood, to inform and motivate Democratic neighbors to vote in elections, and to communicate the needs of the voters at the grassroots level upwards to the level of the Ward and to the City Democratic Party leadership:
What Do Committee People Do?
Committee People are elected to perform these duties:
• “Get Out the Vote” by reminding neighbors of the date and time that polls are open.
• Provide information about candidates, ballot questions, and issues affecting our neighborhood.
• Help register new neighborhood residents to vote.
• Circulate nomination petitions to help candidates get on the ballot.
• Attend ward meetings and voting on candidates that the Democratic Party should endorse for every office on the ballot, from President down to City Council.
• Engage with neighbors, block captains, and community groups to work on matters of concern.
• Help bring elected officials and candidates for office to meet voters in the neighborhood.
Who are my Committee People?
In the May 2022, Primary election the Democratic voting neighbors of Ward 48-Division 20 re-elected Patrice Lynn Jeppson and Sarah Stern to serve as Committee People. It has been our honor to serve these past years as Committee People in Ward 48-Division 20. Voter turnout in our Division has more than doubled during our time of service. Since taking on our elected duties, Division 20 consistently has the highest or second highest turnout in our Ward, and our turnout is always far above the city average in both primary and general elections.
Our Committee Person election-related duties are to:
Register Democratic Voters in our neighborhood
Inform and motivate Democratic neighbors to vote in elections
Explain the voting process, deadlines, and voting locations
Communicate needs and concerns at the grassroots level upward to the Ward and to the City Democratic Party Leadership
So we will be knocking on your door to:
- “Get Out the Vote” by reminding neighbors of the date and time that polls are open.
- Provide information about candidates, ballot questions, and issues affecting our neighborhood.
- Help register new neighborhood residents to vote.
- Circulate nomination petitions to help candidates get on the ballot.
- We will be attending ward meetings and vote on candidates that the Democratic Party should endorse for every office on the ballot, from President down to City Council.
- We will Help bring elected officials and candidates for office to meet voters in the neighborhood.
We will endorse candidates that will fight for policies and programs that make a positive difference for all of us such as Full and Fair Funding for our Schools, Universal Health Care in Pennsylvania, A Fair Share Progressive Tax Structure, An Economy Run on Sustainable Fuels, Criminal Justice Reforms, and a Livable Minimum Wage.
Sarah Jo Stern (1839 S Mole Street; Sarahjo@fastmail.com; phone: 215-688-7369
I ran for Committee Person because I care deeply about the well-being of our neighbors and the strength of our local community. My goal is to ensure that every voice is heard and every individual is represented in the decisions that shape our collective future.
About Sarah: My husband and I have been living at 1839 Mole since 2019, and have lived in Philadelphia for about 15 years. Philadelphia is our forever home and we love being here and investing in our community. We live with our dog Willa and a rotating cast of foster dogs. I have spent over a decade working with or for nonprofit organizations as a consultant or staff member. My commitment to social justice drives everything I do.
- Elected by our neighbors to be their Committee Person in 2022 and 2026.
- Board member at SEAMAAC (Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Assoc. Coalition)
- Volunteer & Foster Parent at PAWS (Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society)
Patrice Lynn Jeppson (1818 S Broad St; 209-541-8233; pljeppson@gmail.com) I ran for Committee Person because I want a Democratic Party that is run democratically and transparently from the bottom up, where the committee person engages with and listens to neighbors as part of the political process — amplifying their voices so that local needs are better addressed.
About Patti: I have lived with my husband in our house at 1818 S Broad for 15 years (30 years total in Philadelphia). We live with 2 cats, a Ukrainian (Horseveld) tortoise, a bunch of gecko’s, various kinds of fish, and a LOT of plants. I am an historical archaeologist. I research the public’s engagement with Philadelphia’s archaeological heritage.
- Elected by our neighbors to be their Committee Person in 2018, 2022 & 2026
- Super-Volunteer for national, state and city-level campaigns, 2004-present.
- Member, South Broad Street Neighborhood Association, since 2018
- Volunteer web and social media manager for the Philadelphia Archaeological Forum
- Recipient, President’s Gold Volunteer Service Award recognizingadults volunteering 500+ hours.
- Editorial Board, Journal of Community Archaeology and Heritage, since 2013
- Former Constituent Services Advisor for PA State Representative Elizabeth Fiedler (House District #184, 2018-2022
- Former Adjunct Assistant Professor, Dept. of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Cheyney University, 2008-1019
- Former Member; Elections Comm., APSCUF (Assoc. of PA State Colleges and University Faculties. Member, UAP-AFT Local 9608 (United Academics of Philadelphia-American Federation of Teachers), 2011-2019
We hope you will follow our Division’s Facebook page where Ward and election information is occasionally posted:
@DemocraticWardExecutiveCommitee4820
Please feel free to drop by and knock on our door or email us, leave a phone message, or text us for election information.
