PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The head of the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee is offering to sponsor a swearing-in ceremony for city officials who were elected in November, after the Kenney administration said it would be unable to coordinate the event.
Normally, the City Representative’s Office makes the arrangements for the inauguration ceremony, which is usually held at the Academy of Music or a similarly grand venue, with pomp and ceremony and speeches.
But the City Representative’s Office took some of the biggest cuts during the COVID-19 pandemic, reducing its capacity. So, it informed the district attorney and city controller that they would have to stage the event themselves.
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Democratic City Committee chair Bob Brady said that bothered him — not so much for the controller and the DA, but for the newly elected judges and those who won retention elections.
“It’s not about the candidates. It’s about the families. They’re not giving their families an opportunity to watch their mother, brother, aunt, sister, cousin, father get sworn in in a nice setting, with a choir and a nice venue,” he said. “I want to see the families see that for our judges.”
Brady has made the offer to host a ceremony to the court’s president judge, who has not yet responded. He said the DA and controller would be welcome to join.
“Why should they not be sworn in like every other judge in the city of Philadelphia has been for years and years and years — for a stupid little $30,000? It makes absolutely no sense to me,” added Brady.
A city spokesperson stressed it’s not the cost of the event itself but the staff capacity that it requires that makes the City Representative’s Office unable to coordinate the event this year.
Controller Rebecca Rhynhart said she’s still considering her options. The DA’s campaign did not return requests for comment.