7. Larry Krasner

Lightning Rod

SHAKY GROUND: A bipartisan group of state lawmakers voted to hold the city’s top prosecutor in contempt for ignoring subpoenas related to his potential impeachment. SYMBOLISM: Despite winning handily at the polls in last year’s DA race, Krasner has become something of a living straw man for those looking to point fingers (and score political points) on the city’s violence epidemic. QUOTABLE: “Democracy- and freedom-loving Pennsylvanians will not be fooled by these anti-democratic efforts to devalue Philadelphia’s diverse votes. Philadelphia is not Pennsylvania’s colony. Our votes count in full, not as three-fifths of a vote.” AND STILL: One wonders if the famously brusque DA — and our city — might be better off if he tried to build a few bridges.

8. Liz Magill

Madam President

POWER PORTFOLIO: The esteemed new Penn prez (a.k.a. the boss at Philly’s largest private employer) has been provost at the University of Virginia, head of Stanford Law, and, in the ’90s, a clerk for RBG. BIG SHOES: Magill’s predecessor, Amy Gutmann, reshaped the academic and physical landscape of Penn and — oh yeah — raised $10 billion for the school. Penn’s endowment today: $21 billion. OLD FIGHTS: New administration, newly revived debate over whether Penn should make payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) to Philly.

9. Tony Watlington

Our Next Great Hope

WELCOME TO PHILLY: The new School District of Philadelphia superintendent faces all the usual challenges of the 200,000-student operation, plus COVID-era learning delays and understaffing, increasingly decrepit facilities, and ever more gun-related trauma. And the stakes (our kids! Our future!) couldn’t be higher. BUZZ: Watlington weathered early criticism over his $450K “transition” consultants, but insiders are optimistic: “People have been struck by how much listening he’s been doing,” says one SDP player. “And every conversation I’ve had with him has been about what the kids are getting in the classroom, which is refreshing.” yes, please: In October, Watlington announced new goals and a new leadership team as the first step in his plan to make SDP “one of the fastest-improving large, urban school districts in the country.”

10. John Fry

Builder

LOCKED IN: In May, the Drexel prez signed a contract extension through 2028 that will make him the longest-tenured leader in the school’s history. EXPANSION: No one can claim the Dragons have been lazy under his direction. Last year, Drexel secured a partnership with Spark Therapeutics to build a $575 million gene therapy center on its campus. trouble in the NEIGHBORHOOD: Drexel and Penn developments may eventually price out the longtime residents of University City and West Philly, a tension that erupted this year at the University City Townhomes.

11. Leslie Richards

Battleship Turner

Big, ambitious goal: Getting to the five-year strategic-plan goal of turning SEPTA Regional Rail and mass transit into “a seamless transit network.” The just-unveiled bus network revamp weighs the same difficult choice the Regional Rail revisions did: convenient access vs. service frequency. FILLING THE SEATS: The choice matters especially for Regional Rail, where ridership remains well below pre-COVID levels. A new program being tested now will let employers offer free transit; we’ll see if it helps. OBSTACLES: A shortage of bus drivers may make frequent bus service hard to provide — and though SEPTA now has sufficient funding to keep everything from falling apart, its capital funding levels remain below those of its peers.

12. Joseph Forkin

Captain of the Delaware

STOCK: Steady. The president of the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation continues to spearhead development projects and connector street upgrades up and down the once-desolate west side of the river. NEXT UP: The DRWC’s largest project on the books is a revitalization and expansion of Penn’s Landing between Chestnut and Walnut, including a cap over I-95 and a nearly 12-acre adjoining park. Forkin says construction — which will bring new gardens, a skating rink and event plazas — should finally begin next year.

13. Danielle Outlaw

Forgettable Police Commissioner

STOCK: Tumbling. After speculation that she tried to ditch us for New York’s open commissioner gig, the city’s top cop resumed her low profile, delivering dry press conferences and few results on addressing rising gun violence. THAT SAID: In February, Outlaw created a new unit dedicated to non-fatal shootings — one of the few of its kind in the country. In a city where eight out of every 10 of those shootings go unsolved, it’s worth a try. MAJOR SHAKE-UP: Outlaw recently promoted three high-ranking officers to deputy commissioners and unexpectedly reassigned deputy commissioner Christine M. Coultery in what’s been seen as the most controversial staffing move she’s made so far.

CHERELLE PARKER

LATEST GIG: District Councilmember. FRONT-RUNNER? Parker is the leader of one of the city’s largest wards, and her 9th Councilmanic District, in Northwest Philly, includes areas that “overwhelmingly and disproportionately turn out to vote,” says political strategist Mustafa Rashed. FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES: Parker is close with building trades leader Ryan Boyer (#4) and recently succeeded him as head of the influential Delaware River Port Authority. “On paper, Cherelle looks formidable,” Ceisler says. POLICY: Parker will likely focus on public safety and quality-of-life issues; she’s proposed hiring more police officers and installing cameras in neighborhoods and has supported “constitutionally just cause” stop-and-frisk. MONEY: $218,000.

HELEN GYM

LATEST GIG: Councilmember at-large. FRONT-RUNNER B? Gym hadn’t declared as of press time, but she was the top vote-getter among all City Council candidates four years ago and has tons of name recognition. LIKELY SUPPORT: Gym has previously won labor backing from the building trades and service-sector unions. She’ll likely have the complete support of the city’s activist left, which helped elect Councilmember Kendra Brooks and DA Larry Krasner (#7). POLICY: Expect a big focus on education, where Gym’s roots as an activist lie. On Council, she introduced bills limiting COVID-era evictions and establishing the city’s fair-workweek law. POTENTIAL CHALLENGE: Like all the at-large candidates, Gym will have to adjust to the dynamics of a mayoral primary. “Running for at-large, you don’t run against anybody; nobody attacks you,” says Ceisler. MONEY: $327,000.

MARIA QUIÑONES SÁNCHEZ

LATEST GIG: District Councilmember. POLICY: She passed bills creating a domestic workers’ bill of rights, supporting affordable housing developments, and establishing a $10 million “poverty action plan.” ODDS DEFIER: Quiñones Sánchez has alienated the city Democratic Party and the building trades yet managed to win reelection in contested primaries. Impressive. CAVEAT: Her outsider-ish status means she may have trouble fund-raising. “If I were running her campaign and had $3 million and could go on TV, I could probably tell a compelling story,” says one City Hall insider. The problem: Can she raise that $3 million? MONEY: Quiñones Sánchez has the least of anyone running for mayor right now, with $182,000 in the bank.

DEREK GREEN

LATEST GIG: Councilmember at-large. POLICY: Green is close to the business community and has touted lowering business taxes and increasing police funding. He also proposed a sweeping campaign-finance-ethics overhaul in the wake of City Councilmember Bobby Henon’s bribery conviction. BIG CHALLENGE: Differentiating himself from Parker, who is also from the politically active Northwest and is ideologically similar. MONEY: $207,000.

REBECCA RHYNHART

LATEST GIG: City Controller. BULLY PULPIT: Rhynhart’s position as Controller, auditing shortcomings of the current government, let her act as a pseudo-candidate while remaining a city official. She issued reports on the inefficient expenditure of gun-violence prevention funds and on trash collection, two issues that should take center stage during the campaign. LIKELY SUPPORT: On October 25th, Rhynhart resigned as controller and officially became a candidate for Mayor. One potential group of supporters: the reform-minded, wealthy business types who fund the cash-flush urbanist Philadelphia 3.0 PAC (#89), which has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on City Council candidates in years past. Maybe some of 3.0’s donors will throw in for Mayor this time? MONEY: $768,000 — twice as much as almost anyone else. BIGGEST CHALLENGE: Will Rhynhart, who once worked at a Wall Street investment bank, run as a progressive à la Gym? If so, she’ll have to prove her bona fides.

JEFF BROWN

LATEST GIG: CEO of Brown’s Super Stores, which operates 12 Shop-Rite and Fresh Grocer locations across the city. OPEN SECRET: Brown hasn’t formally declared for mayor yet, but he’s been informally running and fund-raising for months now. To wit … MONEY: A state PAC with ties to Brown has already raised $930,000. CAVEAT: Many of that PAC’s donations exceed local campaign finance limits, which means Brown must be careful how he spends the cash. POLICY FOCUS: To be determined. But Brown’s business chops, along with the fact that he hires formerly incarcerated citizens at his stores, will almost certainly feature in his campaign’s story. OVERLAP: Brown and Allan Domb are both rich business dudes. Can the race sustain two of them?

ALLAN DOMB

LATEST GIG: Councilmember at-large and real-estate mogul. POLICY: Domb has focused on changing the city’s tax structure; one of his bills provided wage-tax refunds to low-income Philadelphians. EARLY BIRD : Domb was the first Councilmember to resign from office, way back in August. what’s the holdup? He embarked on a “listening tour” after his resignation, but as of press time, he still hadn’t formally announced his candidacy. Maybe he’s worried about having to compete with Brown? MONEY: The total in his candidate PAC — $300,000 — is almost irrelevant, because if he wants more cash, all he has to do is write himself a check.

21. Kevin Mahoney

Health-Care Honcho

MIGHTY MILESTONE: The University of Pennsylvania Health System CEO was the brains behind Penn Medicine’s 1.5 million-square-foot Pavilion, which opened last October. INFLUENCE: He ushered in a new kidney-disease innovation center with CHOP and the Fund for Health, a partnership between Penn Medicine and the Wharton School to improve at-risk residents’ social determinants of health. ’BURBS-EYE VIEW: The health system is planning an ambulatory site in North Wales with chemotherapy, radiation oncology, and outpatient surgery. “We hope to be in the ground within a year,” Mahoney says.

22. Jeff Yass

Big Spender

A stock trader who co-founded Susquehanna International Group, Yass is Pennsylvania’s richest man, with an estimated net worth close to $30 billion, according to ProPublica. So, what does he spend it on? Political donations, for one thing. Yass, a major Republican donor and proponent of school choice, has spent north of $90 million in the past three years alone. Here, a breakdown of some of his recent expenditures.

• 15: Donations to Republican candidates who later voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Yass would eventually say he felt deceived by the election-denying politicians, although he supported one of them, North Carolina’s U.S. Senate candidate Ted Budd, as recently as last year.
• $21.5 million: Federal political action committee donations this year — including $10 million to School Freedom Fund, a pro-school-choice Super PAC, and $4 million to the pro-small-government Club for Growth.
• $850,000: Donations through various state PACs, including Students First, to Philly Democratic pols Tony Williams, Jordan Harris and Amen Brown since 2020. (All three either support charter schools or have faced progressive challengers.)
• $10,000: Donation (through an affiliated PAC) to Doug Mastriano in 2020. In 2022, the same PAC gave $4.5 million to Bill McSwain’s campaign for governor. Then, after Mastriano won the party’s nomination for governor, a different Yass-affiliated PAC ran ads attacking Democratic nominee Josh Shapiro. (The ads have since stopped airing.)
• $34.5 million: Donated to his statewide Students First PAC from 2020 to this year.

23. Jamie Gauthier

Unshakable Progressive

STOCK: Rising. While others have wavered (including Mayor Kenney), Councilmember Gauthier has remained steadfast in confronting the city’s gun-violence crisis. After writing an open letter to the Mayor demanding more transparency on funded efforts, she joined forces with City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart to call him out on his prevention programs’ lack of clarity. QUOTABLE: “We need to be aggressive and courageous in our approach to gun-violence prevention, but that doesn’t mean repeating the mistakes of our past.”

24. Michael Forman

Quiet Connector

INVESTOR’S APPROACH: The CEO and chairman of FS Investments brings his business acumen to solving Philadelphia’s greatest problems. Last year, he and a diverse group of Philly power players created the Equity Alliance, a nonprofit tasked with achieving racial, social and economic equity in the city. NO STONE UNTURNED: This year, the group has led initiatives on gun-violence prevention, facilitated partnerships for Black-owned businesses, and designed improvements to the School District of Philadelphia. QUOTABLE: “Routinely convening this group and driving collaborative efforts focused on making Philadelphia the most equitable big city in America may just be our greatest achievement to date,” Forman says.

25. Ala Stanford

Lifesaver

RECENT PROMOTION: After testing and vaccinating upwards of 75,000 Philadelphians through her groundbreaking Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, Stanford was tapped by President Biden in April to head the region’s U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. COVID CRUSADER: Thanks to her Herculean efforts, Philly vaccinated a greater share of its Black residents than any other large city with comparable demographics. POST-PANDEMIC IMPACT: North Philly’s year-old Ala Stanford Center for Health Equity — her all-purpose primary clinic — aims to reduce health disparities for communities of color … a potential model for other cities.

26. Jerry Sweeney

Pivoting Pioneer

AT THE CENTER OF IT ALL: If University City now looks like an extension of Center City, you have Sweeney’s firm to thank. Since his Brandywine Realty Trust shifted its focus from the suburbs to the city, it’s doubled down and then some on growing the area around 30th Street Station. OUT OF THE OFFICE: Brandywine’s flagship project, Schuylkill Yards, has always had a mix of office, residential and academic space in its plan. But with more people working from home, labs and residential space are coming to the fore. Having Drexel as a lead partner in the project helps, says Sweeney: “Many university presidents are developers at heart.”

28. Cristina Martinez

Flagbearer

FINALLY! After being nominated for a James Beard every year since 2017, Cristina Martinez was awarded Best Chef in the Mid-Atlantic in 2022. Which left us wondering: What took Mr. Beard and Co. so long to recognize her stewed lamb barbacoa and years of immigrant advocacy work? EXPANDING HER SCOPE: Martinez and the team at Casa Mexico recently took over the longtime music venue Connie’s Ric Rac on South 9th Street, allowing for a larger dining room, a liquor license, and the opportunity to hire even more undocumented workers from Mexico and Central America. Martinez calls Casa Mexico “a school for people who are arriving,” explaining, through a translator, “When they are ready, they go to other restaurants, and they can say they came from here and they are fully prepared.”

29. Paul Levy

Sidewalk Czar

BACK TO THE FUTURE: The Center City District’s priority when it was founded in 1991 was keeping the streets clean and safe. The district does much more than that now, but with safety a concern as foot traffic rebounds, those two goals have become a priority again, says Levy. THE OFFICE IS DEAD. LONG LIVE THE OFFICE? Hybrid work is here to stay, says Levy, but he sees office work as making a partial comeback: “A lot of creativity and innovation, a lot of mentoring of young staff, happens in the office.” Comcast’s recent back-to-the-office announcement may be a sign of things to come, he acknowledges, then adds: “If there’s anything I’ve learned these last few years, it’s to not make predictions.”

30. Joel Embiid

Overgrown Kid

BY THE NUMBERS: Seven feet solid? Seven-foot-two? A seven-foot-six wingspan, for sure. LATEST FEATS: Last season’s NBA scoring champ; first foreign player ever to snag the honor, and the first Sixer since A.I. in 2005. TROLL STATUS: Superstar. A must-follow on Twitter. ROAD AHEAD: We have to believe he liked the Montrezl Harrell deal and didn’t want Durant, right? RIGHT?!? MOTTO: Trust the Process. Okay. We’ll give it one more year.

32. Stephen Starr

Betting Man

Trending up: Twenty-seven years after he opened Continental in Old City — it capitalized on the martini craze of the ’90s, accumulated lines down the block, and brought a music-businessman’s sensibility to Philly’s dining scene — Starr has more to accomplish. UP NEXT: In 2023, he’ll unveil the sportsbook-themed Bankroll in the former Boyd Theater on Chestnut Street. (He’s calling it the “Soho House of sports clubs.”) After that, an outpost of Manhattan’s famed French bistro Pastis. QUOTABLE: “I’m looking for the new restaurant that will be iconic in 10 years.”

33. Joanna McClinton

Life of the Party

LATEST TRIUMPH: The State House Democratic leader played a key role in pushing through 2022’s new House and Senate district maps. The updates give Dems a shot at taking the House for the first time since 2010. STAR POWER: Last year, Politico named McClinton one of its top 40 power players in “race, politics and policy,” calling her rise “emblematic of the new Democratic Party.” FIGHTING WORDS: When the House majority leader derided the redistricting, implying it disenfranchised Hispanic and Black populations, McClinton — the first-ever Black woman to lead either caucus — fired back, per the Inky: “I hope that my counterpart is just misinformed and is in fact not trying to mislead people over something that is so serious, about fairness and equality.”

34. Greg Reaves and Leslie Smallwood-Lewis

Dream Team

FROM UPSTARTS TO INSIDERS: One of the Mosaic Development Partners duo’s first major projects, turning a roofless garage in Strawberry Mansion into an acclaimed apartment village, put them on other developers’ radar. INTO THE FRAY: The latest to notice them are David Adelman (#3) and Josh Harris (#41), who brought Mosaic on board for the proposed Sixers Center City arena. Reaves, whose firm crowdfunded an apartment building at Wayne Junction by getting literal “buy-in” from the neighbors, is optimistic that a plan can be worked out to ease concerns of the Chinatown community. NO POINT OF PRIDE: “We are now the largest Black-owned development firm in the city,” says Reaves — though he adds that’s more a commentary on the makeup of the local development industry than an achievement.

35. John McNesby

Pot Stirrer

STOCK: Steady. Despite the ongoing antics of Philly’s Fraternal Order of Police, its union leader has been effective in keeping cops fully funded and provided for. BLAME GAME: McNesby’s constant scapegoating of Larry Krasner (#7) as the primary reason for the city’s rising gun violence has led him to make bogus claims in the press, including in a cringey interview on the national FOP’s Blue View podcast. Title? “If You Want to Be a Criminal, Come to Philadelphia.”

36. Jason Wingard

Truth Teller

ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: “The value of the college degree, in my analysis, has reached its peak and is on the wane,” writes Wingard. Not exactly a predictable take for a college president, but in his new book, Temple’s top guy lays out ways academia might reverse course: reduce costs, update curricula annually, and forge new workplace partnerships. IN PRACTICE: Wingard is planning a new Institute for the Future of Work, combining “expertise on education, experiential learning, research, and industry partnerships aimed at preparing our students for the future of the workplace.”

37. Jeffrey Lurie

Civic Id

happy days again?: When it comes to Philly sports fans, as the Eagles go, so goes our sanity. With the afterglow of 2018 all but gone, Lurie’s team is hot again just in time. Growth business: The movie producer paid $185 mil for our city’s favorite team back in 1994. This year, Forbes valued the franchise at $4.9 billion and tabbed Lurie the 241st wealthiest American ($4.4 bil). meet the next boss? In June, heir apparent Julian (son of first wife Christina, born the year after his dad bought the team) was given an official office and title at the NovaCare Complex.

38. Ira Lubert and Dean Adler

Building Upcyclers

TO THE RESCUE: The real estate investment firm founded by this duo in 1997 has made fixing things that have broken a specialty, whether it’s supermarket chains or historic buildings. AT THE FINISH LINE: Their Battery project is turning a former PECO station in Fishtown into 284 luxury apartments plus office and event space; the first residents should move in by year’s end. UP NEXT: Work should begin soon on the second makeover of the Bellevue. The idea: convert most of its office space into apartments, reimagine its retail, and refresh its hotel. The pair are also eyeing two more historic redos: “If all four are executed, this will represent an investment of $1.5 billion into rejuvenating Philadelphia,” Adler told the Philadelphia Business Journal.

40. Josh Kopelman

VC Wizard

STOCK: Rising. The city’s most fascinating venture capitalist is doing more than just investing (like a recent $6 million stake in software company Canonic Security). He’s also expanding access and opportunity for emerging innovators (launching his First Round Capital’s Angel Directory and first-ever Health Unconference). PAYING OFF: After founding Dorm Room Fund a decade ago, he recently announced it’s now an independent firm with $12.5 million to invest. Translation: What started as a $500,000 student pilot investment fund is now a multimillion-dollar program still being led by and for college entrepreneurs.

41. Josh Harris

The Baller’s Baller

STILL PROCESSING: The Sixers owner/mega-investor has to be wondering if this is the year things pay off for the team that tanked to draft Joel Embiid (#30). NEW PROCESS: The proposed downtown arena (#3) would not only change the nature of Market East. A team-controlled state-of-the-art venue could be a competitive advantage — all the hot teams have them. GIVING SPIRIT: In August, Harris and wife Marjorie dropped $1 million on the Penn Medicine-Wharton Fund for Health to address health inequities.

42. Richard Vague

Smartest Guy in the Room

MVP: Vague, the state’s Secretary of Banking and Securities, played a crucial role in helping reform and “right the investment ship” at Pennsylvania’s biggest pension fund … while maintaining his myriad other roles: V.C. icon, super-philanthropist, champion of cancer research at Penn, policy thought leader, author and more. BIG IDEA: Vague’s 2021 book The Case for a Debt Jubilee — a WSJ best-seller — argues (convincingly!) that what the post-COVID U.S. economy needs most is private debt relief. NEXT UP: Two books in the works, one a new macro-economic theory and the other a biography of Philly’s own Thomas Willing, a.k.a. the most influential early American you’ve never heard of.

44. Jami Wintz McKeon

Legacy Builder

GLOBAL POWERHOUSE: McKeon’s first triumph as chair of Morgan Lewis? Leading the firm through a massive merger with Bingham McCutchen that nearly doubled ML’s size and added offices across Asia, making this Philly-born practice the largest law firm in the world to be led by a woman. RAISING THE BAR: While offices across the city were all but abandoned during the pandemic, McKeon made her big move by starting construction, with Rob Zuritsky’s Parkway Corporation (#78), on a 20-story Morgan Lewis HQ at 2222 Market. For her, the structure will bring more than street cred. “When you walk into our building, it’s Morgan Lewis right away; everybody is affiliated with our firm,” she says. “That’s a competitive advantage. You have total control over how you represent yourselves.” WHAT’S NEXT: Move-in is set for fall 2023, just in time for the firm’s 150th anniversary.

45. The Haas Family

Philly’s Funders

GIVING PROS: The philanthropic family behind the William Penn Foundation continues to impact the city’s arts, civic and cultural engagement with its millions. BY THE NUMBERS: $6 million for Philadelphia’s Cultural Treasures, a program supporting the ongoing COVID recovery of cultural groups and artists led by and/or serving communities of color in the region; another $6 million to help improve and expand Philly-area trails; $4.6 million for free summer programming and enrichment for students. And that’s just since March.

46. Joseph Cacchione

Health-Care Transformer

FRESH FACE: The cardiologist, who just began his tenure as president and CEO of Jefferson Health in September, points to filling staffing shortages and creating better work environments as the greatest challenges in health care right now. QUOTABLE: “Part of the appeal for me coming to Jefferson has been the commitment of this organization … to reaching people that sometimes get left behind. We should be sure that our communities are healthy and be working on things like health literacy and homelessness and food insecurity.”

47. Michael Solomonov

Philly Emissary

HOMETOWN REPPIN’: Laser Wolf’s concept — cooking that centers charcoal grilling, with loads of salatim and pita to round out the party — could work pretty much anywhere on Earth (in an abandoned warehouse, or on a moving bus, perhaps). So it’s not a total surprise that Solomonov’s rooftop version of his Israeli spot was a hit in Brooklyn this past year, giving us ample opportunity to brag about its Philly beginnings. UP NEXT: K’Far with dinner service opening in Brooklyn.

48. James Ijames

Pulitzer Powerhouse of Passyunk

CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT: Oh, just the playwright’s 2022 Pulitzer for Fat Ham, his take on Hamlet. STRANGE OBSESSION: Hauntings, which appear in one form or another in most of his works. NEXT UP: This month, he directs House of Desires at Villanova (“Twelfth Night meets Real Housewives,” he says), and next spring, Theatre Exile produces his latest, Abandon. He also has some TV and film work in the pipeline: “I’ve definitely gotten a lot busier in that department since winning the Pulitzer.”

49. Michael Rubin

King of All Sports

BIG SHIFTS: Rubin sold his ownership share in the Sixers to avoid conflicts of interests related to a reimagining of his $27 billion Fanatics sports-merch company as a one-stop sports shop. Fanatics purchased Topps and has jumped into NFTs to lock down collectibles; look for it to launch a betting platform any minute. justice league: Rubin’s Reform Alliance continues to push for probation and parole reform legislation, landing a big win this year in Florida, where a bill improving the state’s probation system passed in June .

50. Tim Buckley

Fund Giant

POINT OF PRIDE: Under his leadership, Vanguard recorded managing more than $8 trillion in global assets at the end of February — second only (still) to BlackRock. JK, JK: Last October, the company’s chair and CEO quickly reversed — and apologized for — a decision to cut retiree medical benefits that was met with employee uproar. HAZY FUTURE: Vanguard announced in May it would continue allowing investments in fossil-fuel projects — then launched a low-carbon-focused stock fund three months later.

52. Paul Martino

High Roller

STEPPING BACK: The venture capitalist and political disruptor is pausing his quest to reshape the GOP — for now … FINALLY: … because his priorities have shifted elsewhere. After years of planning, the Martino-funded Bankroll Club will soon open downtown, bringing a luxury sports bar and betting experience to Center City. getting back to business: Martino pledges he’ll return to politics starting with the 2023 school-board races. Just as before, he’ll support candidates dedicated to keeping schools open, come hell or high water.

53. Keith Leaphart

Philanthropy Titan

STOCK: Rising. While sitting on boards across town — the Lenfest Foundation, the Inquirer, and the Philadelphia Health Management Corporation, to name a few — the CEO of both Replica Creative and Philanthropi is expanding his direct-giving reach beyond the c-suite and into our wallets. MAJOR MOVES: In September, Leaphart announced he was collaborating with American Express to make it easier for card members to donate to charities near and dear to them via the new AMEX Round-Up feature.

54. Alyn Waller, Marshall Mitchell & Mark Kelly Tyler

Faithful Leaders

STOCK: Rising. The power of these clergy leaders has moved beyond the pulpit and into political battlegrounds as they mobilize their diverse congregations to head to the polls and stand up to gun violence. Waller (not pictured), Mitchell (left) and Tyler (right) have been constantly sought out by candidates seeking office — especially during the midterms. U.S. Senatorial candidate John Fetterman got called out by Tyler and Waller in the press when he didn’t show up to one of their forums — which signaled the lieutenant governor’s lack of primary endorsements in the city. In the general election, Fetterman didn’t repeat the mistake. QUOTABLE: “It has been said it takes a village to raise a child, but it takes a church to raise a village,” Waller said to 6 ABC while hosting a summer back-to-school drive at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church.

55. Bryce Harper

Phaith Healer

STOCK: Rising. When the Phillies signed Harper to a record (for a minute) $330 million deal in 2019, they hoped he’d make the playoff-starved team relevant again. DOING HIS PART: Harper has raked. In 2021, even as the team missed the playoffs, he won his second NL MVP, prompting ownership to (finally!) spend that stupid money and blow past the luxury-tax threshold. BY THE NUMBERS: When a thumb injury knocked him out of the lineup for two months, the Phils went 32-20, a testament to the team that ownership has built around the superstar. The team’s first playoff run since 2011 (and first National League pennant since 2009) is proof that at long last, something is working.

56. Carl Dranoff

Neighborhood Reinventor

NEW HEIGHTS: Dranoff has been an early player in neighborhoods now on the rise; western Fitler Square, eastern University City and Camden all began their turnarounds with the opening of Dranoff factory conversions. But his latest triumph, Arthaus, takes him back to the street he’s most closely associated with: It’s the tallest building on South Broad/Avenue of the Arts. “PLAYING REAL MONOPOLY”: Dranoff isn’t done with Fitler Square or the Ave. He has two more projects cooking on South Broad and has also announced a residential tower to replace the 22nd and Walnut Sunoco: “Gas stations shouldn’t be taking up three-quarters of an acre of prime real estate.”

58. Bill Golderer and Michael Banks

Agents of Change

BIG MOVE: In the book of Luke, Jesus reads from the prophet Isaiah: “He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners.” Golderer, a minister and United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey exec, took those words to heart in teaming up with legal organizations to host 30 record-clearing clinics. BY THE NUMBERS: Nearly 350,000 Philadelphians have arrests that could block them from employment and other opportunities. These clinics — hosted by UW’s new The Promise coalition — are transformational not just for those individuals, but for the city. “Clearing past convictions creates opportunities in the workforce, which in turn helps break the cycle of economic hardship holding so many Philadelphians back,” says Banks, The Promise’s executive director.

59. Geoff Gordon

Concert Kingpin

BY THE NUMBERS: The regional president of Live Nation has produced more than 10,000 concerts. Don’t know his name? You most certainly know his work, from Made in America to Fourth of July concerts on the Parkway. If you’ve been to a huge show in Philly, Gordon was probably behind it. FAMOUS FRIENDS: Not too many Philadelphians have Jay-Z’s number in their phones. CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT: Gordon was the one of the primary forces behind reopening the Met, the long-closed early-20th-century opera house he’s turned into Philly’s best music venue.

61. John Chin

Chinatown’s Champion

SPOTLIGHT: With the proposed Sixers arena abutting Chinatown, Chin — the longtime prez and CEO of Philly’s Chinatown Development Corporation — is a major player to watch, plus a “statesman and pragmatist” with a reputation for getting things done, says Bill Golderer (#58). PRIORITIES: PCDC’s goal? “Preserving Chinatown — not just as a moniker, but as an authentic place for people who work and live and visit here because of the culture we offer.” N AY FOR NOW: “Arenas and neighborhoods don’t mix,” Chin says. Unless the Sixers can convincingly prove otherwise, he says, “We’re going to oppose it.”

62. Chris Gheysens

Sizzlin’ CEO

BIG MOVES: The Wawa head has promised to double the number of hoagie havens by 2030, eventually adding up to 100 stores a year. In September, the company announced its first location in … Alabama?!

64. Sharif Street

Party Boss

STREET FIGHT: The Democratic state senator became the first Black person to lead the state party following a bruising campaign against Delco’s Jerry Lawrence — who had Governor Tom Wolf and U.S. Senator Bob Casey in his corner.

65. Aubrey Montgomery and Neil Deegan

Moneymakers

GREASING THE WHEELS: The influence of the duo behind political fund-raising giant Rittenhouse Political Partners extends beyond the Delaware Valley — they’re credited with pushing Ed Gainey in his upset win in last year’s Pittsburgh mayoral race, too. WHO’S WHO: A quick spin through the firm’s financials could fill a Rolodex of Philly pols — Vincent Hughes, Malcolm Kenyatta, Larry Farnese, Jamie Gauthier (#23), and more.

66. Jazmine Sullivan

Velvet Voice

BY THE NUMBERS: After picking up 12 Grammy nominations over the past dozen years, the CAPA grad finally struck gold with her album Heaux Tales, taking home two awards at this year’s show.

67. The Team That Brought the World Cup to Philly

Football Fanatics

GOAL! We were all excited to hear the city would host 2026 World Cup games. (Philly loves soccer! Go Union!) The bid leadership team, led by former Independence Blue Cross CEO Dan Hilferty and aided by a bevy of business leaders, state and city officials, and soccer stars like Carli Lloyd and Alejandro Bedoya, now has to figure out the logistics of hosting a once-in-a-lifetime event. COMPLICATION?: As part of the bid, planners proposed using two fields — of 12 proposed as part of FDR Park’s redevelopment plan — as a practice site. Which didn’t exactly please activists who’d like to see the popular Meadows trails there preserved and zero fields added. FDR Park reps maintain that those fields, part of the redevelopment plan before the pandemic, are coming, FIFA or not.*

68. Della Clark and Regina Hairston

Support Beams

WORK TO DO: As two of the leading voices for Black entrepreneurship in the city, Clark (the Enterprise Center) and Hairston (the African American Chamber of Commerce) are tasked with tackling one of the most pressing questions we face — in a city with climbing property values and booming venture capital, how do we ensure that all Philadelphians partake of the prosperity?

69. Rafael Ilishayev and Yakir Gola

Pandemic Darlings at a Crossroads

GO … POOF? Their road to world domination hit a few bumps this year, as the founders of NoLibs-based GoPuff slashed 10 percent of their workforce in July, put a proposed IPO on the shelf, and shuttered warehouses around the globe.

70. Jim Friedlich and Shawn Mooring

Playing-Field Levelers

BIG MOVES: The Lenfest Institute for Journalism duo branched out this year to form the Philadelphia Media Founders Exchange, an accelerator program that funds and supports BIPOC media entrepreneurs in town.

71. Jalen Hurts

Game Raiser

BREAKOUT: At the beginning of the season, the conventional wisdom was that if Hurts got even a little better — a bit more accurate, a few wiser decisions — the Eagles would certainly make the playoffs again. But his sensational play has raised expectations exponentially; now, we want it all.

72. Nok Suntaranon

Heat Seeker

LATEST TRIUMPH: The Kalaya chef is poised to open a much larger Fishtown location of her crucial-to-Philly Thai restaurant — and shut down the OG Bella Vista location, alas — where she’s cooking without dish modifications or compromise on the sourness and heat she knows to be damn delicious.

73. Donald “Guy” Generals

Community Organizer

STOCK: Rising. Four stories above 48th and Market, to be exact. The Community College of Philadelphia president just oversaw the opening of the college’s Career and Advanced Technology Center, which will offer classes in automotive technology, manufacturing and health care.

74. Ashley Jordan

History Builder

Latest Triumph: After just a year as president and CEO of the African American Museum of Philadelphia, Jordan is overseeing its move to the city’s long-vacant Family Court Building, placing the institution where it belongs: along the Parkway, among the city’s most venerated museums.

75. John Hollway

Criminal Justice Crusader

REFORM-MINDED: As head of the Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice at Penn, Hollway works with criminal justice entities throughout the country to find errors when they happen and make sure they never happen again.

76. Rick Williams

Big-Shoe Filler

NEXT UP: The popular 6 ABC veteran already replaced the legendary Jim Gardner as anchor of the 11 p.m. news. With Gardner expecting to fully bow out any day now, all eyes are on Williams to lead the 6 p.m. slot as well.

77. Jennifer Rodriguez

Business Builder

LATEST TRIUMPH: The Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce leader was part of a coalition of chambers that successfully fought for wage- and business-tax cuts before City Council in June. QUOTABLE: “Black, brown and diverse businesses have a lot of potential to grow, to really employ and participate in the economy at its fullest potential,” she told the crowd at the Closing the Gap Conference this past July. “But there are just certain things in the systems … that are just not quite clicking.”

78. Rob Zuritsky

Parking Warrior

BY THE NUMBERS: His Parkway Corporation oversees more than 21,000 parking spaces across North America, but for how long? Zuritsky has been busy turning Philly surface lots into other things (see the new Morgan Lewis HQ) and in September launched a $100 million fund to develop lots in other states.

79. Marc Brownstein

Adman

BIG MOVES: The president and CEO of the Brownstein Group — the ad and PR firm behind Wawa, Lyft, La Colombe, and 76 Place, the proposed Sixers arena — recently spun off its public relations arm to create Red Thread PR. AND BIG GOALS: Brownstein hopes Red Thread launches into a national player and quintuples in size over the next five years.

80. Tayyib Smith

Go-Go-Goer

COMING SOON: The serial entrepreneur and multi-hyphenate’s latest project, with partner Jacob Roller, is a $30 million redevelopment in Kensington combining a former bank and a textile factory into a multi-purpose complex with apartments, offices, retail, a food hall and event space.

81. Brittany Lynn

Queen of Hearts

BACKSTORY: With her delightful Drag Queen Story Time, Philly’s hardest-working drag queen is using her visibility to help the next generation grow up to be more loving and accepting. NEMESIS: The protesters (and death threats) keep coming. “I’m six-foot-five, and in heels, I’m almost eight feet tall, so I can handle a crowd,” Lynn says. “I’m just going to keep doing the work.”

82. Pedro Ramos

Hometown Hero

BLOCK CAPTAIN: The North Philly native has spent his career — from chairing the school board to serving as Philly’s managing director and city solicitor to his work now as president and CEO of the Philadelphia Foundation — making his hometown a better place. His careful navigation of the foundation is evident across the city, from the PHL COVID-19 Recovery Fund to advancing and supporting LGBTQ rights.

83. Terrill Haigler

Ya Fav … Councilman?

CLEANING UP: After highlighting the city’s trash woes throughout the pandemic via his viral Instagram account, Haigler has set his sights on City Council. “We start with the trash, and then that trickle-down effect can lead to policy around education, can lead to policy around jobs, can lead to policy around homelessness,” he says.

84. Karen Buchholz

Tower Powerer

CROWNING ACHIEVEMENTS: The Comcast vet has been bounding up the corporate giant’s ladder for decades — she oversaw the construction of both Comcast towers in Center City — and recently used her experience to lead the company’s Lift Zone program.

85. Brian O’Neill

Development Diviner

CASHING OUT: After shifting his focus to life sciences in recent years, the MLP Ventures head put one of his earlier projects — Malvern’s 100-acre mixed-use Uptown Worthington — on the market. The asking price? A humble $250 million.

86. Shannon Maldonado

Block Builder

NEXT UP: Since turning her Queen Village boutique Yowie into a national name, Maldonado has upped the ante, buying a 9,600-square-foot building on South Street. Expect a small hotel, a cafe and a shop, all opening soon.

87. Jeannine Cook

Booky Battler

WHEN DOES SHE SLEEP? Where to start? The bookstores — Harriet’s and Ida’s — might be a good place, but then you’re shortchanging the activism. Maybe it’s the events with Alice Walker, or Nikole Hannah-Jones? Crusading for Harriet Tubman Day? By the time you read this, she’ll likely have identified new causes worth passionately fighting for, too.

88. Haig Aghajanian

Breakthrough Connector

EUREKA MOMENT: The Penn heart researcher had the audacity to wonder if the mRNA research of colleague Drew Weissman could make their fellow colleague Carl June’s game-changing cancer treatment more accessible. BIG BET: Capstan Therapeutics, where Aghajanian is co-founder and VP of research, has raised $165 million and assembled a who’s who of Penn scientists (including Weissman and June) to find out.

89. Ali Perelman

Tide Turner

COMING SOON: With the oh-so-important City Council elections in 2023 — all 17 seats will be on the ballot — what candidates will Perelman’s Philadelphia 3.0 PAC throw its money behind? The group’s recent success backing Jamie Gauthier (#23) in 2019 portends more reform candidates.

90. Christa Barfield

Agriculture Empress

PLANTING SEEDS: The visionary behind FarmerJawn opened a community garden center in Germantown and launched a nonprofit to teach Black and brown future farmers how to run their own agriculture businesses.

91. Darrell Clarke

Domino-in-Chief

risky business: In September, the City Council president announced special elections to fill two vacant Council seats — a seemingly standard event. By doing so, though, he inadvertently delayed the printing of mail-in ballots for this month’s election, leaving us all-important (pats self on back) Philly voters with a smaller window in which to submit votes in the state’s governor (#1) and U.S. Senate races.

92. Matt and Mike Pestronk

Foundation Builders

BREAKING NEW GROUND: Having made their reputations turning old buildings into dazzling new apartments, the brothers behind the Post Brothers are starting from scratch. Well, sort of: Two new-construction projects they’re working on now, 1001 South Broad and Piazza Terminal, build on what developer Bart Blatstein started.

93. Philly Goats

Beat Poets

MODERN DANCE: This loosely assembled rap group has no chart-topping hits. But anyone who’s on TikTok can fill you in on the dance they popularized this year — arms catapulting and hips thrusting, impossible to describe with words. Or you can watch Drake’s “Sticky” video, where the Canadian crooner (ineptly) attempts to re-create it.

94. Errin Haines

Honest Dealer

CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT: If you’ve read any of the Inquirer’s damning “A More Perfect Union” series highlighting the systematic ways that racism has defined our city’s history, you’re familiar with Haines. She’s the contributing editor overseeing the project.

95. Richard Green

Family Banker

POWER MOVE: The CEO of family-owned Firstrust Bank is stepping away from day-to-day operations, anointing bank prez Timothy Abell the first non-Green in charge. UP NEXT: The move gives Green, still sole owner of the $5 billion operation, more time to focus his rainmaking energies on the Green Family Foundation’s charitable efforts.

96. Jose Garces

Mic Passer

HANDING OVER THE REINS: With his chef-residency program, Garces offered up Volvér (and $5K in matching donations) to diverse Philly chefs making their mark on the city. NEXT STEPS: A national expansion of Garces’s fast-casual taqueria concept, the revival of Garces Trading Company, and the opening of Amada in Radnor.

97. Jamal Johnson

Power Walker

SOMEONE’S GOTTA DO IT: The Marine vet has become the face of the city’s anti-gun-violence movement, leading marches and hunger strikes to urge the administration (and residents) to do something, anything, to stop the shooting.

98. Patty Jackson

Radio Star

STREET CRED: After 40 years on the air, Jackson is one of the few people on this list who need no introduction. Just ask the residents of the 2300 block of Ellsworth Street, which was recently renamed Patty Jackson Way.

99. Saeed Ferguson

Hyped Beast

STOCK: Rising. His meteoric ascent — from teenage shopper to Ps & Qs buyer to designer of a coveted streetwear brand stocked in shops around the country — has been a sight to behold. Ferguson’s All Caps Studio style is just as sunny as he is; it won’t be long before the rest of the world knows about him, too.

100. Jim Kenney

Disappearing Act

LATEST TRIUMPH: Uh. WHAT’S NEXT: Hmm. CROWNING ACHIEVEMENTS: Well, ya see … NEMESIS: [gestures at entire city]