Nina Ahmad, women’s advocate and entrepreneur seeks open council seat

By Stephen Williams

With at least one council-at-large seat open after the resignation of Helen Gym this week, Nina Ahmad, an entrepreneur, former deputy mayor and women’s advocate is throwing her hat in the race for 2023.

On Wednesday, Gym announced her candidacy for mayor at the William Way Community Center, 1315 Spruce Street.

A native of Bangladesh, Ahmad came to the U.S. alone when she was 21 and improved her English by watching U.S. television shows and waiting tables at a diner. Later she earned a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.

“I’m running to make Philadelphia a healthier, stronger city,” said Ahmad. “All of our challenges are, at their root, health challenges. From crime and gun violence to housing and the environment, if we make Philadelphia a healthier city, we can make it a stronger, safer city. As a biomedical scientist, I’ve spent my life taking on these kinds of challenges and I’ve used science and data to find new solutions to old problems. That’s my agenda for Philadelphia: A healthier city for a stronger future.”

Currently, Ahmad is state president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and previously was president of the Philadelphia chapter of NOW.

In 2020, Ahmad ran for and won the democratic nomination for Auditor General, a statewide office, becoming the first woman of color to do so. But Ahmad subsequently lost in the general race to republican Timothy L. Defoor, who was a Dauphin County controller. She was deputy mayor for Public Engagement to Mayor Jim Kenney.

At Thursday’s city council session, the body seated four new members to replace those that resigned earlier this year to run for mayor. They included council members Anthony A. Phillips, (D.-9th) who replaced Cherelle Parker and Quetcy M. Lozada, (D.-7th) who replaced Maria Quinones Shanchez, along with James A. Harrity III and Sharon Vaughn, who replaced Allan Domb and Derek Green.

“Nina is an inspiring leader and a true champion for the underdogs of our city. I know she’ll throw her heart — as she always does — into finding innovative solutions to Philadelphia’s biggest problems, said Ryan Boyer, Business Manager of the Laborers’ District Council and the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council.

Stephen Williams is a reporter for the Philadelphia Tribune, where this story first appeared.