and Ryan Papir Democratic State Representative Jim Roebuck won a sixth term to the State House last night, easily defeating Republican Herman Carden. Roebuck joined approximately 30 Democrats yesterday at The Market at University Square to monitor the results of various state-wide elections. Roebuck represents the 188th district, which includes the Quadrangle, King's Court, English House, Graduate Towers A and B, Low Rise North and High Rise North. While the outcome pleased Roebuck, it did not come as a surprise to him. "You work hard and you try to do good things [and] sometimes you get rewarded," he said after the polls closed. "I think that's a good indication of how hard we've worked." Dolores Jones-Butler, Roebuck's chief of staff, echoed his sentiments. "He's been very visible and you don't have to worry about a campaign when you've been very visible in your district, you've kept your promises and you've worked diligently," she said. "If you do your homework, you don't have to worry about the test." Nancy Cox, a Democratic committee member in the 19th division of the 46th ward, was enthusiastic. "He's very popular in just about all of West Philadelphia," she said. "He's wonderful. He works on the nitty-gritty problems in the neighborhood that we're always being confronted with." In the past, Roebuck has worked on education, housing and the problems created by nuisance bars. "I'm serving on the task force of higher education funding, so the whole question of state funding for Penn is very much a part of the discussion," he said. "And we're looking at ways in which we justify the dollars we give to institutions like Penn. That's going to be a major issue in the upcoming [session of the] legislature." He also commented on working with Governor-elect Tom Ridge, a Republican. "Certainly the governor sets the tone of the state government," he said. "Ridge does not have a vision that I particularly believe necessary for the Commonwealth or for Philadelphia, so I would be concerned about that."
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