City Commissioners

The City Commissioners are a three-member elected board that serves as Philadelphia's county board of elections. They register voters, certify candidates' paperwork, run polling places, count ballots and certify results for every election held in the city. They are one of the five row offices and are separate from the mayor and City Council.^[1]

1 Structure and election

The office dates to the 1854 city-county consolidation, and commissioners are county officials who report to neither the mayor nor City Council. Three commissioners are elected citywide, and each voter chooses two candidates, so that no party can hold more than two of the three seats and the minority party holds the third. Omar Sabir (elected 2019) and Lisa Deeley (elected 2015) are Democrats, and Seth Bluestein (who joined the board in 2022) is a Republican. Sabir became chair in January 2024, succeeding Deeley, who had chaired the board previously, and Deeley serves as vice chair.^[2] Commissioners are paid city salaries and run a professional staff. The board holds public meetings, for which transcripts are posted at vote.phila.gov.

2 What the office does

Key functions include voter registration (see Voter Registration and Mail Voting), receiving nomination petitions and ballot questions, assigning polling places and training poll workers, administering mail-in and absentee ballots, operating voting machines (the city adopted a new system in 2019), canvassing and counting ballots, and certifying results. They also publish election results and a Citizens Handbook. The board decides petition challenges and adopts policies for processes such as pre-canvassing. Candidates should read Running for Office in Philadelphia, and voters Elections in Philadelphia.

Because the board is a county board of elections, it is also the body that sets many of the practical details residents experience: where polling places are located, how many divisions each ward has, which sites accept mail ballots, and how voters are notified about problems with their ballot. The commissioners hold hearings on petition challenges and publish the election calendar for each cycle. Their budget is set by City Council as part of the city budget, and the City Controller audits their finances (see City Controller).

3 Recent elections

The office publishes mail-ballot status updates on election days and posts unofficial and certified results at vote-results.phila.gov. Citywide turnout in that primary was about 22.3 percent, down from 23.6 percent four years earlier, according to an Inquirer commentary. Results for November 2025, including races for District Attorney and Controller, were posted at vote-results.phila.gov.

4 Oversight and state role

Elections follow the Pennsylvania Election Code, so many rules, including mail-ballot deadlines and the dating of ballot envelopes, are set by the General Assembly and the courts rather than the commissioners (see Pennsylvania State Government and Philadelphia). The Pennsylvania Department of State certifies voting systems and issues guidance, and federal law applies to federal elections. Candidates for the board are subject to campaign finance rules (see Campaign Finance in Philadelphia). The City Controller audits the office's finances. Ward-level party officials also play a role at the polls (see Ward Leaders and Committeepersons).

5 Contacting the office

Voters can check registration, find polling places, request a mail ballot and report problems at vote.phila.gov. Residents can also attend the board's public meetings. Voter questions about the election system are covered in the Glossary.

See also: Council Districts and Wards, Political Parties in Philadelphia, Ballot Questions and Charter Changes.

References

1. Philadelphia City Commissioners (vote.phila.gov), meeting transcripts and office information (2026); Billy Penn, "How Philly works," December 1, 2025.
2. City & State Pennsylvania, "Omar Sabir replaces Lisa Deeley as chair of Philly city commissioners" (January 2024).
3. Philadelphia Inquirer commentary on voter engagement and the 2026 primary (July 27, 2026); vote.phila.gov, 2026 primary ballot status update (May 19, 2026).