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A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Philadelphia. Written by local reporters.

Axios Philadelphia

Axios Philadelphia Thought Bubble

Say hello to the Philadelphia Zoo's trio of new Ankole-Watusi cattle. 

State of play: The Ankoles, which are known for their massive crescent horns and are called the "cattle of kings," arrived this month. 

Their names were announced this week: Yamaani (speckled), Gaaju (dark brown) and Kutekaana (reddish brown).

Details: The cattle can weigh between 1,200-1,600 pounds each. 

This marks the first time the breed native to Uganda in East Africa has lived at the zoo.

Meet the newest members of the Philadelphia Zoo

Ankole-Watusi cattle. Photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Zoo

Say hello to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Philadelphia Zoo" data-vars-click-url="https://philadelphiazoo.org/?gclid=CjwKCAjw7IeUBhBbEiwADhiEMU6hY9Q5rWYPpbqbLS08c28GYMaaYpRhjMmhorCnpf0G9TpIDeGNrBoCUvcQAvD_BwE&amp;gclsrc=aw.ds" data-vars-content-id="15bf8bd6-e0c5-4587-8b62-877e14d7a5ed" data-vars-headline="Meet the newest members of the Philadelphia Zoo" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://philadelphiazoo.org/?gclid=CjwKCAjw7IeUBhBbEiwADhiEMU6hY9Q5rWYPpbqbLS08c28GYMaaYpRhjMmhorCnpf0G9TpIDeGNrBoCUvcQAvD_BwE&amp;gclsrc=aw.ds" target="_blank">Philadelphia Zoo</a>&#x27;s trio of new Ankole-Watusi cattle. State of play: The Ankoles, which are known for their massive crescent horns and are called the &quot;cattle of kings,&quot; arrived this month.

Things to Do

A new regional facility will soon better prepare union carpenters to help build the 21st century energy grid by training them to work underwater. 

Driving the news: The Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, which represents Philadelphia Local 158, will open a dive school later this year. 

The move comes after the union council bought a former diving academy site in Sicklerville, New Jersey, for $1 million.  

Why it matters: The facility will be the only union-owned dive school in the U.S. offering underwater training, Frank Mahoney, a spokesperson for the regional carpenters council, tells Axios. 

Tradesmen trained in diving will be critical as New Jersey and the nation invest more heavily in constructing offshore wind farms to produce electricity. 

State of play: For the first time, the carpentry union will offer its own training in underwater welding, diving certifications and diving safety requirements, among other things. 

Dive training has been traditionally limited for the carpenters union because it lacked a dedicated facility, requiring costly partnerships.

Details: The union will offer a four-year program at the 10,000-square-foot facility free of charge for apprentices and union members.   

A journeyman diver can earn around $90 an hour, Mahoney notes. 

Zoom out: The Biden administration has committed to leasing federal waters around the U.S. coastline to wind power developers over the coming years, with large auctions for leases set for the New York and New Jersey coasts.   

Wind developer Orsted recently inked a deal to use all union labor for its projects along the East Coast. 

New Jersey aims to power more than 3.2 million homes through a new offshore wind industry by 2035. 

What they're saying: Mahoney says the union diving school is expected to become a destination for carpenters and apprentices in the Philadelphia region and across the country. 

"The offshore wind industry is coming," he said. "America has been behind in it. It's coming this way, and we want to be sure that we have the best trained, most skilled, safest American workers to build these turbines for American consumers."

Du'Juan Lewis, a member of Piledrivers and Divers Local 474 who attended the former New Jersey diving facility years ago, tells Axios the school changed his life, allowing him to help build major infrastructure and commercial projects across the U.S.

Lewis credits the training with higher paychecks and more consistent work.

"We need more kids to join the school, join the union … get the training that we have so we can compete against countries and we can be more energy efficient," Lewis says.

What to watch: There's no timeline yet for when the first cohort will train at the union dive school. 

Union representing Philly carpenters dives into the future

Tradesmen trained in diving will be critical as New Jersey and the nation invest more heavily in constructing offshore wind farms to produce electricity.

Illustration of a hammer on a diving board over a pool.

Labor unions

A new regional facility will soon better prepare union carpenters to help build the 21st century energy grid by training them to work underwater. Driving the news: The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters" data-vars-click-url="https://eascarpenters.org/" data-vars-content-id="21a8c24a-33f5-4237-99c2-84a5456049cb" data-vars-headline="Union representing Philly carpenters dives into the future" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://eascarpenters.org/" target="_blank">Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters</a>, which represents <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Philadelphia Local 158" data-vars-click-url="https://philadelphiacarpenters158.org/" data-vars-content-id="21a8c24a-33f5-4237-99c2-84a5456049cb" data-vars-headline="Union representing Philly carpenters dives into the future" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://philadelphiacarpenters158.org/" target="_blank">Philadelphia Local 158</a>, will open a dive school later this year.

News

The Republican U.S. Senate primary remains up for grabs, turning Pennsylvania's Election Day into election week.

State of play: Celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz, backed by former President Trump, and former hedge fund CEO Dave McCormick remain deadlocked in the contest.  

Oz is ahead by fewer than 1,300 votes out of more than 1.3 million counted, as of Thursday.

By the numbers: Approximately 51,000 mail-in and absentee ballots remain to be counted as of Thursday morning, according to Mark Walters, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of State. 

Of those, an estimated 17,000 were cast by Republicans.

Between the lines: On Thursday, Lancaster County had remarked and scanned approximately 16,000 mail-in ballots that had printing errors, said Ray D'Agostino, chairman of the county's Board of Commissioners. 

What they're saying: Pennsylvania is expected to count all ballots "within a few days," Department of State spokesperson Grace Griffaton said. 

"We might know sooner than that, but given the possibility of recounts and the need for official certifications, among other potential issues, it is not reasonable to expect final results in all races on primary election night — or even the next day," she said. 

Meanwhile, Trump has called on Oz to declare victory, Politico reports.  

"It makes it much harder for them to cheat with the ballots that they 'just happened to find,'" Trump said on his social media platform, Truth Social.

Zoom out: A recount is triggered in Pennsylvania when the margin of victory is within 0.5%, per state law. 

What's next: Counties will begin adjudicating ballots today, which involves giving certain ballots additional scrutiny to determine whether they should be counted.

Counties face a 5pm Tuesday deadline to report unofficial results for statewide offices. 

Pennsylvania's GOP US Senate primary remains deadlocked

Pennsylvania is expected to count all ballots "within a few days," a state official said.

From left to right, David McCormick and Mehmet Oz. Photos: Nate Smallwood/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

Pennsylvania

The Republican U.S. Senate primary remains up for grabs, turning Pennsylvania&#x27;s Election Day into election week.State of play: Celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz, backed by former President Trump, and former hedge fund CEO Dave McCormick remain deadlocked in the contest.

Politics

More than 57,700 registered voters have already submitted mail-in ballots ahead of tomorrow's primary election, according to city figures as of last Thursday.

Why it matters: Two years after the use of mail-in ballots was expanded during the pandemic, some voters are "becoming very familiar with the process," while others are not, City Commissioner Lisa Deeley told Axios.

"There are still many voters who are not using it regularly or not at all, so I would say there is a learning curve," said Deeley, who leads the board that oversees the city’s elections. 

By the numbers: A total of 105,470 people — approximately 10% of the city's more than 1 million registered voters — requested mail-in ballots for Tuesday's primary, said Nick Custodio, a deputy commissioner under Deeley. 

Yes, but: That figure, which also includes replacement ballot requests, is slightly below the 2021 general election, when more than 107,600 mail-in ballot and replacement requests were made.

More than 73,100 mail-in ballots were submitted during the November election, Custodio said. 

Between the lines: Primary elections traditionally have low turnout in Philly, far below general elections and presidential races.  

The last midterm primary election in 2020 saw 32% turnout, and 17% of registered voters participated in 2018. 

Be smart: Mail-in ballots must be submitted to county election officials by 8pm on Tuesday. 

Philly has more than a dozen mail-in ballot drop boxes around the city. 

Thousands of Philly mail-in ballots roll in before the primary

Mail-in ballots must be submitted by 8pm on Tuesday.

Illustration of a mailbox covered in "I Voted" stickers.  

More than 57,700 registered voters have already submitted mail-in ballots ahead of tomorrow&#x27;s primary election, according to city figures as of last Thursday.Why it matters: Two years after the use of mail-in ballots was expanded during the pandemic, some voters are &quot;becoming very familiar with the process,&quot; while others are not, City Commissioner Lisa Deeley told Axios.

Pennsylvania's Democratic progressives and party establishment candidates both secured wins in Tuesday's primaries.

What's happening: The seesaw battle within the party continues, though most incumbents fended off challengers in the few hotly contested races.  

Democratic candidates backed by progressive groups, like Reclaim Philadelphia, failed to pry seats from some longtime candidates.

Congressional 3rd District: Incumbent Dwight Evans cruised to victory over challengers Alexandra Hunt, a millennial progressive, and union organizer Michael Cogbill.

Hunt, a former stripper, drew national attention with her "Elect Hoes" slogan and garnered a massive war chest.

8th District state Senate: Longtime incumbent Anthony Williams appeared to overcome a challenge from progressive Paul Prescod, an organizer with the Democratic Socialists of America and former Philly school teacher. 

Williams faced his first competitive primary in his West Philly district, which he first won in 1998.

194th District for state rep: Tarik Khan, former president of the Pennsylvania state Nurses Association, appeared to topple incumbent Pam DeLissio. 

Tarik had endorsements from both the party and progressive groups. 

200th District for state rep: Progressive Chris Rabb appeared to overcome party-backed Isabella Fitzgerald. 

The district was redrawn in the recent redistricting process, which pitted incumbents Rabb and Fitzgerald against one another in the same district. 

182th District for state rep: Party-backed Ben Waxman, a former journalist and ex-spokesman for District Attorney Larry Krasner, bested three other candidates for the vacant seat. 

He also was backed by progressive groups. 

184th District for state rep: Incumbent and progressive Elizabeth Fiedler appeared to fend off a challenge from party-backed Michael Giangiordano II, a real estate professional. 

10th District for state rep: Incumbent and party-backed Amen Brown appeared to beat out Cass Green, who was endorsed by progressive groups, and community radio personality Sajda Blackwell.  

Pennsylvania's Democratic progressives and establishment face off

The seesaw battle within the party continues.

Illustration of a blue donkey with the shadows of two people on either side of it

Pennsylvania&#x27;s Democratic progressives and party establishment candidates both secured wins in Tuesday&#x27;s primaries.What&#x27;s happening: The seesaw battle within the party continues, though most incumbents fended off challengers in the few hotly contested races.

Mike D'Onofrio

Featured stories

Pennsylvania's GOP US Senate primary remains deadlocked

Union representing Philly carpenters dives into the future

Pennsylvania's Democratic progressives and establishment face off

Meet the newest members of the Philadelphia Zoo

Thousands of Philly mail-in ballots roll in before the primary