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Progressives notch win with Rabb victory in Pennsylvania Democratic House primary

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by Max Rego - 05/19/26 10:24 PM ET

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by Max Rego - 05/19/26 10:24 PM ET

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Pennsylvania state Rep. Chris Rabb (D) is projected to win the Democratic primary in the Keystone State’s 3rd Congressional District, according to Decision Desk HQ.

Rabb faced off against state Sen. Shariff Street (D) and pediatric surgeon Ala Stanford in the primary for the district spanning parts of west and north Philadelphia.

A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, the 56-year-old has represented Pennsylvania’s 200th House District since January 2017. Prior to that, he was an aide for former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun (D) and worked in the Clinton administration as part of the 1995 White House Conference on Small Business.

He now heads into the November general election as the Democratic nominee in a heavily blue district, which is represented by retiring Rep. Dwight Evans (D-Pa.).

Evans, 72, announced last June that he would not seek reelection — more than a year after he suffered a stroke. The Philadelphia Democrat has represented the 3rd district since November 2016 and previously spent more than three decades in the Pennsylvania House.

Evans ran unopposed in his final general election and captured at least 90 percent of the vote in each of his four prior races. In 2024, the district voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris by 77 percentage points, according to The Downballot.

That makes Rabb, with no Republicans running, the heavy favorite heading into November.

Leading up to the race, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D), the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC and the Working Families Party endorsed Rabb. Ocasio-Cortez even campaigned for Rabb in Philadelphia last week and told a crowd that the state representative is “unbought and unbossed,” according to WHYY.

Street, the son of former Philadelphia Mayor John Street (D) and the former chair of the state Democratic Party, entered the race the day after Evans announced his impending retirement.

On Monday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) joined local Democratic leaders, including Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker (D) and state House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D), in stumping for Street.

Stanford, the first Black female pediatric surgeon who was trained entirely in the U.S., entered the race in October with the backing of Evans. The 55-year-old also founded Philadelphia’s Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium.

As of April 29, the campaigns of Rabb, Street and Stanford received more than $967,000, more than $1 million and more than $506,000 in contributions, respectively, according to the Federal Election Commission.

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