Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner fends off primary challenge from moderate Democrat

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has won the Democratic nomination to set him up for a third term in office, fending off a more moderate challenger, according to a Decision Desk HQ projection. 

Krasner defeated former Municipal Court Judge Pat Dugan in a race that served as a proxy battle between the progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic Party. A self-identified progressive, Krasner has been a common target for Republicans pushing back against liberal-leaning cities’ handling of crime and public safety issues.

Krasner has made several major changes to the district attorney’s office during his time in office, which began in 2018. He ended prosecutions for possession of marijuana, reduced sentencing for certain crimes and pushed to eliminate cash bail for nonviolent offenses. 

Dugan agreed with Krasner on numerous points, including on cash bail, sentencing reform and broader opposition to mass incarceration. But they differed on issues including the death penalty, a policy Krasner entirely opposes and Dugan believes should be used in rare, extreme cases. 

But Dugan has slammed Krasner for his handling of prosecutions while in office, arguing he would be aggressive in pursuing firearms offenses, while Krasner hasn’t.

“He has not been a prosecutor for the last seven and a half years. He ignores victims, he ignores crimes, he ignores victims’ families. It’s not the way it’s supposed to be,” Dugan told a Philadelphia-based Fox affiliate. 

The former judge, who left his position to run for district attorney, has blamed Krasner for an overall rise in crime and retail theft in the city. 

But Krasner argued his policies are beginning to work after a surge in crime during the COVID-19 pandemic. He’s pointed to a more recent decline in homicides. 

He comfortably defeated Dugan in the primary despite being well outraised, winning more than 60 percent of the vote, as of the latest vote count Wednesday.

Krasner’s primary win should give him a clear path to reelection to a third term in office, as no Republican filed to run for the office in the heavily Democratic-leaning city. He’s won electoral battles in the past, surviving a similar primary challenge in 2021 from a more moderate candidate who lost by more than 30 points.

He also faced impeachment from a GOP-controlled state Legislature in 2022 over his handling of crime and public safety in the city, but the trial in the state Senate was indefinitely delayed and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled last year that the articles against him expired.

One unsettled result from Tuesday’s primary is the outcome of an organized write-in campaign to make Dugan the Republican nominee.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Philadelphia Republican Party Chair Vince Fenerty said Dugan appears to have received enough write-in votes to win the GOP nomination. The reading of all the write-in votes will take days to complete to determine if Dugan received at least the 1,000 votes necessary for the nomination.

But Dugan has previously said he wouldn’t accept the Republican nomination if chosen and indicated in his statement conceding the primary to Krasner that the result marked the end of his campaign.

Updated May 21 at 12:53 p.m. EDT