State Representatives in Philadelphia: Leadership and Key Bills

Philadelphia is represented in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by roughly 26 members whose districts fall wholly or partly within Philadelphia County in the 2025–2026 session. All but one are Democrats. The delegation includes the Speaker of the House, the chair of the Appropriations Committee, and the chair of the Transportation Committee, which gives Philadelphia an outsized voice in Harrisburg even as the chamber sits on a 102–101 Democratic majority.¹ To find the representative for a specific address, the General Assembly’s “Find My Legislator” tool accepts a street address, city, and ZIP code.²

The Full Philadelphia Delegation

The following House members serve districts located entirely or partly within Philadelphia County in the current session:³⁴

District 10: Amen Brown (D)
District 170: Martina White (R)
District 172: Sean Dougherty (D)
District 173: Pat Gallagher (D)
District 174: Ed Neilson (D)
District 175: MaryLouise Isaacson (D)
District 177: Joseph Hohenstein (D)
District 179: Jason Dawkins (D)
District 180: Jose Giral (D)
District 181: Malcolm Kenyatta (D)
District 182: Ben Waxman (D)
District 184: Elizabeth Fiedler (D)
District 185: Regina Young (D, Philadelphia and Delaware Counties)
District 186: Jordan A. Harris (D)
District 188: Rick Krajewski (D)
District 190: G. Roni Green (D)
District 191: Joanna McClinton (D, Philadelphia and Delaware Counties)
District 192: Morgan Cephas (D)
District 194: Tarik Khan (D)
District 195: Keith S. Harris (D)
District 197: Danilo Burgos (D)
District 198: Darisha Parker (D)
District 200: Christopher Rabb (D)
District 201: Andre D. Carroll (D)
District 202: Jared Solomon (D)
District 203: Anthony Bellmon (D)

Martina White of the 170th District, covering the far-northeast neighborhoods of Bustleton, Millbrook, Parkwood, and Somerton, is the delegation’s only Republican. She was first elected in a 2015 special election, the first new Republican elected in Philadelphia in 25 years, and now serves as the Republican Caucus Chair for the House.⁵⁶

Who Leads the Delegation

Joanna McClinton, Speaker of the House

The highest-ranking member from Philadelphia is Joanna McClinton, whose 191st District covers parts of Philadelphia and Delaware County. McClinton serves as Speaker of the entire 203-member Pennsylvania House. She was reelected to the role for 2025–2026 after an initial 101–101 deadlock with Republican Leader Jesse Topper; Topper withdrew, and McClinton prevailed on a second ballot.⁷ She championed the CROWN Act, which prohibits discrimination based on hair texture and style and was signed into law in November 2025. Her stated priorities for 2026 include raising the minimum wage, securing transit funding, legalizing marijuana, and regulating skill games.⁸

Morgan Cephas, Delegation Chair

Rep. Morgan Cephas of the 192nd District in West Philadelphia chairs the Philadelphia House Delegation, a role she was elected to by 25 colleagues during the 2023–2024 session.⁹ First elected to the House in 2016, Cephas also chairs the Government Oversight Committee and sits on Appropriations.¹⁰ She has been a leading voice on SEPTA funding and affordable housing.¹¹

Other Members With Senior Roles

Jordan A. Harris of District 186 chairs the House Appropriations Committee, which gives him a central role in state budget negotiations.¹² Ed Neilson of District 174 chairs the House Transportation Committee and has been the primary legislative driver on transit funding.¹³ Malcolm Kenyatta of District 181, first elected in 2018, is the first openly LGBTQ+ person of color elected to the General Assembly. President Biden appointed him in 2023 to chair the Presidential Advisory Commission on Advancing Educational Equity for Black Americans.¹⁴

Why the One-Seat Majority Matters

Democrats held the Pennsylvania House after the November 2024 elections by a 102–101 margin. The Senate stayed in Republican hands at 28–22. That split forces bipartisan dealmaking on nearly every piece of legislation.¹ With the Speaker’s gavel, the Appropriations chair, and roughly a quarter of the Democratic caucus, Philadelphia sets much of what the House takes up. Many of those bills then stall in the Senate, including the minimum wage increases and transit funding measures the delegation has prioritized.

SEPTA and Transit Funding

No issue has united the Philadelphia delegation more consistently than funding the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. SEPTA warned in 2025 that without state action it would raise fares and cut service.

In June 2025, the House passed House Bill 1364, sponsored by Neilson, by a 107–96 vote. The bill would raise the share of existing state sales tax revenue going to the Public Transportation Trust Fund from 4.4% to 6.15%, generating an estimated $1.5 billion for transit over five years without raising taxes.¹³ The Senate had not acted on it as of late 2025. In April 2025, Philadelphia lawmakers rallied at City Hall for full SEPTA funding, with Cephas calling potential cuts “a direct hit at the heart of Philadelphia’s workforce.”¹⁵

In August 2025, the House Transportation Committee advanced HB 1788, a revised proposal increasing sales tax transfers by 1.75 percentage points. To attract Republican votes, it added $600 million in road construction bonds and new accountability standards on fare evasion and transit agency performance. Rep. Sean Dougherty of District 172 said the issue had been debated for over two years and that his neighbors were “out of time.”¹⁶

School Funding

A 2023 Commonwealth Court ruling declared Pennsylvania’s school funding system unconstitutional. Speaker McClinton has noted that the William Penn School District, the lead plaintiff in that case, lies within her district.⁸

In June 2024, the House passed HB 2370 on a bipartisan 107–94 vote, codifying a seven-year funding plan from the Basic Education Funding Commission. The legislation aimed to deliver $5.1 billion to close adequacy gaps in 367 underfunded school districts, $1 billion in tax relief, and reforms to cyber charter school funding.¹⁷ McClinton described the bill as one that would “inject billions of dollars into Pennsylvania’s chronically underfunded schools.”¹⁸

Rep. Christopher Rabb of District 200 has introduced legislation requiring 100% of state education funds to flow through the fair funding formula.¹⁹ Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler has pushed “Solar for Schools” legislation to reduce school energy costs. Governor Shapiro’s budget proposal includes roughly $242 million specifically for the School District of Philadelphia as part of a broader $1.1 billion increase in basic education spending.¹⁸

Gun Violence Prevention

Gun violence is a defining issue for Philadelphia’s state legislators. Rep. Jared Solomon of District 202 is the lead sponsor of House Bill 568, which would establish gun violence task forces under Title 18 of the state’s criminal code. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee in February 2025 and remained there as of mid-2026, co-sponsored by Reps. Giral, Khan, Green, and Waxman.²⁰

Skill Games

The regulation of skill games, the electronic gambling terminals found in bars, convenience stores, and private clubs, has become a flashpoint in 2026 budget talks. On June 15, 2026, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled the machines are illegal slot machines but issued a 120-day stay to let lawmakers pass a regulatory framework.²¹

Philadelphia members have taken different approaches. Rep. Danilo Burgos of District 197 sponsors HB 2213, which would impose a $500-per-month flat fee on each device, cap the number of terminals statewide at 50,000, and give Philadelphia authority to set its own rules.²¹ Rep. Ben Waxman of District 182 sponsors HB 2557, which would place the machines under the Gaming Control Board, restrict the speed of play, and impose daily loss limits. Waxman called the issue “the potential largest expansion of gambling in Pennsylvania history since the casinos.”²² Appropriations Chairman Jordan Harris has signaled that the House passed a spending plan and that action now rests with the Senate.¹²

Other Bills to Watch

Rep. Amen Brown of District 10 sponsors HB 1735, which would legalize and regulate adult-use marijuana through a new Cannabis Control Board. He has also introduced legislation establishing a legislative Hunger Task Force and measures to protect children from electronic cigarettes.²³ Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta has co-sponsored legislation to raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $15 per hour, ban conversion therapy for minors, and establish a state cybersecurity coordination board.²⁴ On the Republican side, Rep. Martina White has introduced HB 1831 to prohibit face coverings in public spaces and HB 2623, an “Educational Opportunity Omnibus” expanding educational tax credits.⁶

Terms, District Size, and Pay

Pennsylvania state representatives serve two-year terms. Each district has a target population of roughly 61,000 to 64,000 residents based on the 2020 Census.²⁵ Following a 2023 pay increase, the base salary for most legislators is approximately $106,422, with presiding officers earning more. Members also receive per diem payments for sessions and meetings, mileage reimbursement, and health benefits that cover the member’s family. Lawmakers who took office before March 2019 have access to a traditional defined-benefit pension; those seated afterward participate in a hybrid or 401(k)-style plan.²⁶ Each member keeps at least one district office in addition to space in the Capitol complex in Harrisburg.²⁷

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Spotlight PA. Pennsylvania Election Results 2024 State House Democratic Republican Control
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Find My Legislator
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Members
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Philadelphia County Delegation. Members
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RepWhite.com. State Representative Martina White
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Rep. Martina White
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WHYY. PA House McClinton Speaker
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City & State PA. Q&A With PA House Speaker Joanna McClinton
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City & State PA. Morgan Cephas’s Millennial Message for PA-3 Primary: Be Bold
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Rep. Morgan B. Cephas Biography
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Rep. Cephas Video
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Penn Capital-Star. PA Lawmakers Renew Push to Regulate, Tax Skill Games After High Court Ruling
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Philadelphia Delegation Applauds House Passage of Transit Funding Bill
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta Biography
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Pennsylvania Senate Democrats. State Lawmakers, Transit Riders, Workers and Community Members Call on the PA General Assembly to Fully Fund SEPTA
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Spotlight PA. SEPTA Cuts, Fare Hikes as Pennsylvania Legislature Struggles to Act
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Public Interest Law Center. Breakthrough: PA House Approves Comprehensive School Funding Plan in Bipartisan Vote
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WHYY. Pennsylvania Public Education Funding, Josh Shapiro, State Legislators
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Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Rep. Rabb Introduces Public School Funding Legislation
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. HB 568
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Spotlight PA. Skill Games Tax Machines: Addiction, Crime, Profits, and Legislature Proposals
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NBC Philadelphia. Skill Games Are Slot Machines, Must Adhere to PA’s Gambling Law, Court Rules
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Rep. Amen Brown
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta
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Pennsylvania Department of State. Pennsylvania Redistricting – House of Representatives
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PennLive. With Generous Benefits, PA Lawmakers Could Be Second-Best Compensated in Nation
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Spotlight PA. PA Legislature Expense Accounts and Hidden Legislative Privilege