From Richard Winger at Ballot Access News:
According to this Philadelphia Inquirer story, quite a few candidates are running in the November 3, 2015 election for Philadelphia city office. As the story notes, Philadelphia uses limited voting for city council-at-large. No party can run for all the seats. The objective is to prevent one party from winning all the seats. Normally Republicans win the non-Democratic Party seats, but this year Republicans will have competition from independent and minor party candidates. Thanks to Andrew Gripp for the link.
From the article cited, written by Tricia L. Nadolny:
The deadline for independent candidates to file petitions for the November election passed Monday with a handful of candidates saying they hoped to beat the odds in a city with a virtual one-party rule.
In the mayor’s race, Democratic nominee Jim Kenney and Republican nominee Melissa Murray Bailey are being challenged by, among others, a Mount Airy newspaper publisher and a Walmart employee from Germantown. A former member of Mayor Nutter’s administration and a science teacher are among those joining the City Council at-large fray.
All face steep odds. Elections official Tim Dowling, who has been at his post nearly three decades, said he can’t remember a third-party candidate winning a major office.
Many on Monday didn’t seem discouraged.
“We run to win,” said Osborne Hart, a 63-year-old member of the Socialist Workers Party who is running for mayor on a joint ticket alongside Council at-large candidate John Staggs. “That’s why we’re here today, to be on the ballot. We’ll campaign very vigorously for working people.”
Philadelphia candidates mentioned in the article as running for office:
Green Party
Kristin Combs, city council at-large
Glenn Davis, city commissioner
Socialist Workers Party
Osborne Hart, mayor
John Staggs, city council at-large
Free Dominion Party
Leah Wright, city council district 5
Michael Galganski, city council district 8
Independents
James Foster, mayor
Boris Kindij, mayor
Andrew Stober, city council at-large
Bobbie T. Curry city council district 9