Delaware County Republicans are asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to weigh in on the constitutionality of the county’s system of government, arguing it should guarantee representation for the minority party on County Council.
Delaware County has five County Council members. While Republicans have held all five seats in the past, Democrats currently control every seat.
Michael Straw, interim executive director of the Republican Party in Delaware County and one of the petitioners in the filing, said one-party control has led to increased spending and taxes.
“The D have taken a full 5-0 majority. It’s been nothing but massive increases in spending and massive tax increases, so I feel we should have a watchdog,” Straw said.
When asked whether critics would view the legal challenge as political because Democrats currently control the council, Straw rejected that argument.
“At the end of the day, there’s never a bad time to have bipartisanship in government,” Straw said.
Attorney Shohin Vance, who supports the challenge, said the goal is not to give the minority party control but to ensure it has representation.
“It’s important the dissenting views are given a voice — not a majority voice, but just a seat at the table,” Vance said.
The news conference announcing the filing was held outside Republican headquarters in Media, where Democratic leaders also spoke out against the effort.
Cheryl Grasso, chair of the Delaware County Democratic Committee, said Republicans are attempting to change the rules after losing power.
“It’s the second time they tried to rewrite the rules,” Grasso said.
Grasso was referring to a separate petition Republicans are circulating that would expand County Council from five members to seven, with two seats reserved for the minority party.
“The watchdog in the room, in my opinion, is just a way to change the rules now that they are not in power,” Grasso said.
When asked about other Pennsylvania counties that guarantee minority party representation on their governing bodies, Grasso said Republicans should win those seats through elections.
“If they want that, earn it,” Grasso said.
If the Supreme Court challenge succeeds, voters would choose fewer candidates than the number of seats available in a County Council election. Under that system, no political party could win every seat, preventing the kind of complete majority Democrats currently hold and Republicans have held in the past.
Other Pennsylvania counties don’t allow one-party to control all the seats on the County Council, including in Philadelphia, which has given other parties such as the Working Families Party representation.
Vance said the proposal would still reflect the political makeup of Delaware County while ensuring some minority party representation.
“Having a majority Democratic council absolutely does represent where the county is. Having 100 percent control when 100 percent of the county electorate is not one party,” Vance said.
NBC10’s Lauren Mayk reached out to the Delaware County Council for comment, and they referred her to the county’s Democratic Party. No County Council members returned our request for comment.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC Philadelphia. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC Philadelphia journalist edited the article for publication.
