PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has announced his pick to replace Al Schmidt, who is leaving the City Commissioners in a couple of weeks.
His nominee won't have to change offices.
Seth Bluestein has worked for the City Commissioners for ten years, including five years as Schmidt’s chief deputy and three years as chief integrity officer.
Bluestein worked alongside Commissioner Schmidt through the introduction of new voting machines, the mail-in ballot rollout, the pandemic-plagued 2020 elections, and the nightmarish aftermath when the then-sitting president falsely accused Schmidt of hiding fraud.
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Bluestein took the fallout, too, including personal attacks.
Still, Bluestein said he’s excited to take a step up in serving the voters of Philadelphia.
"I certainly understand the environment that I’m coming into, and I think that makes it all the more to have somebody with the right experience to be in this role," Bluestein said.
Kenney said has the character, experience, and expertise for the job, and credited Bluestein’s work with being critical to the fairness and accuracy of the 2020 elections.
Commission chair Lisa Deeley applauded the selection, praising Bluestein’s competence, commitment, and integrity.
Schmidt is stepping down to take over the election watchdog group Committee of 70.
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Bluestein, like Schmidt, is a Republican and will fill the role of representing the minority party on the Commission. Bluestein will serve out the two years left in Schmidt’s term. He said he doesn't know yet if he will run for the office in two years.
"I’m focused on the day-to-day operations of the department and making sure everything’s working the way it’s supposed to," he said. "As far as that other stuff goes, I’ll consider that at the appropriate time."
Normally when an elected official leaves office early, there’s a special election. For this office, the City Charter gives the mayor the power to nominate a successor that City Council must confirm.
