PHILADELPHIA—Constituents of Pennsylvania’s Third Congressional District have the chance to choose a new fighter in the U.S. House of Representatives in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.
Current Congressman Dwight Evans has announced he will not be seeking re-election, opening up a seat in Washington, D.C., to represent West Philadelphia and nearby areas.
People’s World had the chance to speak with Rep. Chris Rabb, a progressive currently representing the 200th District in the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives. We discussed the reasons why he is running and the issues motivating his campaign.
“Philly needs a fighter in Congress now more than ever,” Rabb told the World. “It needs someone who is independent, bold, has integrity, and believes that the power of the people is greater than the people in power.”
Rabb said he believes that he would be able to take “activism and collectivism to Congress.”
Legislative powerhouse
Entrusted by the residents of District 200 for five consecutive terms in the State House, Rabb has been a prolific legislator and says he knows how to get results from the process. He highlighted his record as an author of so many progressive bills, something that sets him apart from the many in Congress with no legislative background.
For Rabb, “The throughline of all my work as a legislator is justice.” He has worked on legislation related to issues of decarceration, environmental sustainability, educational justice, and more.
Some of the work he’s proudest of as a lawmaker has been his efforts to repeal the death penalty, make Pennsylvania green by 2050, ensure all state education dollars go through the fair funding formula, protect Black land loss that hurts family farms, and invest in local newsrooms and independent media as a way to protect against fascism.
Over the course of his tenure, Rabb has worked on over 100 bills.
Legacy of service
Rabb’s great-great-grandfather, John H. Murphy, founded The Afro-American, a Black newspaper in Baltimore, in 1892. Murphy’s paper covered all the issues that mainstream media ignored.
Rabb said he feels that he has a “moral responsibility to continue that legacy, to not lose that to history but to learn to history and apply it to these trying times.” The tradition passed down from his great-great-grandfather is part of why Rabb has been so dedicated to protecting the independent press against media monopoly.
“The reason I even understood the value of public service is because I descend from freedom fighters,” Rabb said. “Cultural DNA shaped me and got me to understand it’s not about party, it’s not about self-interest at the expense of others, it’s about the power of collective action in the face of great adversity,” he explained.
Fighting for all people
At the state level, Rabb has worked to bring that ethos to his work. He argues that it’s important to him that his legislative work emphasizes that “we have more in common than what divides us.” In the Pennsylvania House, Rabb has focused on trying to transform the way the rural and urban divide is configured, creating a roadblock towards progress.
Unlike other politicians, Rabb isn’t afraid to shake things up in order to stand up for what is right. “If we have members of Congress who are too afraid to say patriarchy, misogyny, structural inequality, oligarchy,” he charged. “If they’re too afraid to say the word, what makes anyone think they will change the things that those words represent?”
Rabb told the World that his commitment to public service can be judged by voters, who will find a legislator who doesn’t quit. He said he always relies on advice given by his grandfather and urged other lawmakers to do so as well: “Don’t tell me what you’re gonna do, show me what you did.”
For anyone who wants to see what type of public servant Rabb would be in Congress, they need only survey what he has already done. “Look at the bills I’ve introduced, look at my advocacy, look at the ways I seek to engage communities within and beyond my District.”
Primary voting will take place in the spring, and the general election will follow in November 2026.
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