Where Pennsylvania 3rd Congressional District Democratic primary candidates stand on affordability

Democrats across parts of Philadelphia will choose who they think should replace retiring U.S. Rep Dwight Evans in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary election.

The field has narrowed to four: tax attorney Shaun Griffith, state Rep. Chris Rabb, Dr. Ala Stanford and state Sen. Sharif Street.

One of the biggest issues for voters nationwide is affordability, but that word has a different meaning to different people, and lawmakers have looked at different ways to tackle it.

CBS News Philadelphia interviewed all four candidates to discuss a bevy of topics important to voters. On Wednesday, the focus is on affordability.

State Sen. Sharif Street

Street discussed utility and healthcare costs.

"I've introduced a clean energy bill, the Clean Energy Standards bill," Street said. "If we increase the availability, that would help reduce the price of energy for people. They want us to address that. So, guess what, if I'm doing something and your utility bills are lower, they care about that."

"People want to know, 'What are you going to do to make sure I can afford my healthcare?' Pennie brought down the cost of health insurance," Street added. "That was something I did at the state level. If we reduce those tax credits, it will bring down the cost of healthcare for everyone."

Street's energy standards bill remains in committee in Harrisburg.

Dr. Ala Stanford

Stanford says her first target would be the war in Iran.

"You have to vote against what [President] Trump is doing with this war," Stanford said. "We must. $1.4 billion a day would allow us to fund kids' food — breakfast and lunch — in school. It would allow us to deal with the food deserts that exist right here in the city, where you can't get a good grocery store. It would allow us to deal with the poor air quality that exists."

While Stanford believes ending the war will have a trickle-down effect on everyday prices, it's unclear if that money would flow into programs like this.

Tax attorney Shaun Griffith  

Tax attorney Shaun Griffith wants lawmakers on the record when it comes to healthcare.

"I would withhold my vote for speaker until there is a vote on the floor for universal healthcare, either the Medicare for All Act or something similar, and for a higher minimum wage," Griffith said. "Because I think at minimum, the representatives should be on record on whether they believe healthcare is a basic right of Americans and also whether hard-working Americans should be paid better."

Lawmakers have introduced some form of universal health care legislation since 2003, but it's never made it out of committee.

State Rep. Chris Rabb

Rabb is looking to raise wages.

"Make sure that we have a living wage for all. I've introduced the boldest living wage bill in the entire nation that starts at $15 an hour and goes up to an actual living wage, indexed to inflation," Rabb said. "Getting rid of the tipped minimum wage, which here in Pennsylvania is $2.83 in 2026. We could significantly reduce poverty in America, and that would have a disproportionate effect on the 3rd Congressional District."

According to Congress's website, PA-03 has the second-highest poverty rate of any congressional district in the state. However, Pennsylvania has declined to raise its $7.25 minimum wage since 2009.