Hello I'm Zeke, and welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let's talk Pennsylvania. The guest I have today is a lawyer in Delaware County, Pennsylvania with a focus on family law. She has worked to assist with protections from abuse, custody, divorce, and has represented victims of sexual assault. And now she's running to be a Magisterial District Judge in Upper Darby. Thank you so much for being here, Gabriella Coleman.

For years, I’ve knocked thousands of doors all over Pennsylvania and poured my heart and soul into supporting candidates and causes that make a difference—from local school board races to national elections. The personal is political, and I take every election in Pennsylvania personally.

Where the mainstream media has failed you, I will give you truth and independence. You’ll hear from Democratic leaders, candidates, and change-makers who are working to improve the health of the Commonwealth, and it won’t be boring as hell.

No matter where you are, I’ll meet you with hope and a plan to make your community better one day at a time. Welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let’s talk Pennsylvania.

Thank you for having me.

I'm so excited that you're here. Is this your first podcast?

It is my first podcast, long time listener, but this is my first guest, first time being a guest.

That's great.

It's so great. That's so great to hear.

We're gonna have a lot of fun,

learn all about your campaign and you, so let's get right into it, okay? All right, so the first thing we're going to do is play a game, and I call it Give Her the Gavel, okay? Where you are going to be the judge, and I'm gonna give you some cases, and you're going to deliver a verdict, okay? All right, so am I the bailiff? Am I the person who like, is that what it is? Who announces the case and everything? Okay. All right, so the court is now in session.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay, all right.

The Beelith,

All rise for Gabby Coleman. Your honor, if it pleases the court, will present the first case.

It does, it does please the court.

So here's the first case. Beyonce drops an album at midnight with no promo causing emotional distress to fans unprepared for greatness. Okay? Is Queen Bey guilty of chaos or just exercising her right as an artist?

You

Okay.

Queen, Queen Bey is never guilty of anything she can do no wrong, not guilty. And I think, I think the fans can take it. I think they can handle it. No dab, no damages.

Okay, thank you for your verdict. Okay, no damages awarded. Judge Coleman

has spoken. Okay, here's the next case. ⁓ During a movie night date, the significant other falls asleep and claims they were just resting their eyes. So Judge Coleman, should the act of falling asleep be considered abandonment?

Mmm.

Ooh, how long have these two been together?

Let's say six months. Let's say six months. Yeah.

Six months, six months.

I think abandonment is a strong term. I think we give this person another chance. But if it happens more than once, ⁓ they're treading on some very ⁓ shaky ground there. Probation, probation, yes, probationary period, cooling off period.

Okay.

Another chance.

Okay, so probation maybe? Is this a probationary period? Okay, no. Fine, okay, fine. You have ruled,

fine. Okay, here's the last case. Your roommate eats your leftovers without asking. Is this a felony or a misdemeanor? ⁓ Straight to jail? my gosh. All right, fine. So we don't even need to wait for sentencing, like we're done, right?

That's a felony. Straight to jail. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Exactly.

going straight to jail. All right, well thank you very much. Justice has been served for the Honorable Gabby Coleman. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

What types of cases does a magisterial district judge hear and why are you running for this position?

Sure. the district court is the lowest level of the court system in Pennsylvania. This is the court that most people are going to interact with if they interact with the court system at all, because they hear things like traffic cases, speeding tickets, parking tickets, ⁓ minor criminal cases. These are what we call summary offenses, things like

public drunkenness and harassment. And then they do small claims, which is any civil lawsuit up to $12,000. And then a smattering of other things like landlord-tenant, truancy, things like that. ⁓ And in my opinion, the most important thing that a Magisterial District Judge does is they hear...

Okay.

preliminary hearings for all felonies and misdemeanors charged in their district. And a preliminary hearing is the time where the DA and other law enforcement is coming to the court system and saying, we are accusing this person of a crime. Here is the evidence that we've gathered so far. Is there enough evidence ⁓ to send it up to the court of common pleas which is the next level up?

Okay.

the county court system. And the Magisterial District Judge has to hear the evidence presented and decide whether there is enough evidence ⁓ to keep the case going or to dismiss it ⁓ at that level. So that, to me, that is the most important job of an MDJ. ⁓ And at that preliminary hearing or in those early stages of the criminal ⁓ case is when they'll also do things like set bail. ⁓ Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay.

So I have this graphic on my website, ⁓ thezekelypodcast.com. And at the, it's a pyramid and basically at the top you have this, you know, the Supreme Court, the state Supreme Court, then you have the Superior Court, ⁓ the Commonwealth Court, and then the Court of Common Please is below that, correct? Do I have that set up correctly? And so you are kind of lumped into the Court of Common Please level or it's one step below that? Okay.

Sure.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Right, that's correct.

So it's one step below the court of common, please.

Okay,

but you're the ground level essentially.

Yep, yep,

Alright, let's play another game, okay? We're gonna play Am I Lying? Now, you're gonna be a judge, I might be lying or I might not be, and you're gonna catch me on it, okay? I hope. Alright, so first thing. I once won an iPad at a conference.

Okay.

You're not lying.

is true. That is true. When I was in residency, I went to a conference, I think it was in DC actually, and there was a vendor set up and I was participating in a competition and it was the entire weekend. It was like this round robin event and at the very end of the conference I had the fastest time in this event and I won an iPad. And that was a big deal. I mean that was like when iPads were first coming out.

Hahaha

You know, it was probably like a five gigabyte iPad. It was worth like a thousand dollars at the time and I was a poor resident. was like, remember I called my wife, I was like, I want an iPad. And it was such a big deal. So that is true. Very good. I did indeed win an iPad a long time ago. All right, here's the second one. I perform slam poetry.

Wow.

That's very cool.

You're lying.

I am lying, I don't perform slam poetry. I do like poetry and I do enjoy watching slam poetry sometimes, but I am not a poet at all and I should not be allowed in those venues.

I'd love to see it though.

Oh

no, you can be in there to watch. Yeah. No, and would love to see you do some slam poetry. I'm gonna challenge you to do that. Put it on your bucket list.

You think I could do it? ⁓ thank you.

You are too kind. That, I maybe, all right,

maybe I'll do it in on one of my episodes. I'll do slam poetry with someone who's actually good at poetry and I will showcase them. I'll be the funny part of it. All here's another one. I used to wrestle in high school.

Okay.

That's true.

is true. I did. I was not very good at it. But I did wrestle for a couple years in high school. I think I won like one match ever. And I hated the outfits. I just hate they were just so uncomfortable. But yeah, that's what I did. OK. really? I've I've actually never paid attention to rower outfits. They wear the singlets. They do. So on.

I bet.

⁓ My husband was a rower, so very similar outfits. Yeah.

Yeah, the singlets, very similar to wrestling. He still wears his though, know, when he

jumps on the peloton, he still wears his. I really hope he never listens to this because he's gonna be like you Alvin Bieber so many, so many of my.

He still wears it? It's still the same one or he says new ones?

My god They are the most uncomfortable

unflattering things ever and he still wears them doesn't look like we're wearing shorts on the peloton it's gotta be a singlet, huh?

I don't understand it, but yeah, he wears the singlet. They call them, what do they call them? Unis? Unitars? I don't know.

my gosh, that is hilarious.

Unitards,

yeah, I mean we called them singlets at the time, but my gosh, that's hilarious. Well, it's gonna get out unfortunately, so it's just a matter of time. All right, I have two more. I once had a pet pony.

Yeah. Sorry, Dan.

Ooh, this is tough. You're not lying.

That is true. I am not lying. You're good. You're really good. Yeah, I had a pony when I was a child back a long time ago when I lived in rural Pennsylvania and his name was Whiskers.

⁓

I'm good.

here's the last one. Let's see if you can get all of these I'm pretty impressed. I have to say All right. I have an unreal ranking on fortnight

Okay.

know what Fortnite? No, Fortnite the video game. Yeah, yeah, my kids, my kids play it all the time. So.

I know what Fortnite is, yes. I don't know what I'm not... I don't know

what an unreal ranking is, but really good. I'm gonna say that's true. ⁓ man, I was so close, I was so close.

Okay, it's really good. It's really good.

is false. I know you almost had me. So close. Yeah, no. Unreal ranking

is like you're the best in the world. ⁓ No, I'm not good. I don't think I've actually ever played a single round. I watch my kids play it all the time. But I've never actually played a full round. So you did a great job, though. You got a lot of those. You're a very good lie detector. Good. All right.

You

Okay. Thank you. I just hope that

I don't have any gamers in my courtroom or else I'm in trouble.

Otherwise, otherwise you're gonna do terrible.

tell me about your current job as a lawyer and how it has prepared you to be a judge.

I work for a nonprofit organization and we are the rape crisis center ⁓ for Delaware County. And so all of my clients are victims of sexual assault or another very serious crime. And I represent them in family law matters, mostly protections from abuse.

Mm-hmm.

common parlance would be restraining orders. And I do a lot of child custody, some divorce and child support.

How has it prepared me to be an MDJ? Well,

I get to see the very best people at the very worst. I say that all the time. And I get to see this slice of humanity. going back to what I said in the beginning about how people don't interact with the court system as much as we think.

These are people who never wanted to interact with the court system. These are people who need the guidance to get through it. And I pride myself on providing access to an inaccessible system for people who never wanted to be there in the first place. And, of course, any lawyer has studied the law.

how to apply it, has studied the rules, keeps up to date with all of that. So, you know, all of that is part and parcel of my job and what I'm trained to do and would make me a great judge. But I think my job in particular is,

putting logic and the analytical piece of being a lawyer together with the compassion and empathy of a social worker and bringing that into a courtroom. And I think that's what's going to make me the very best magisterial district judge for this district.

Yeah, I mean, that's heavy stuff for you to be an attorney for rape victims and victims of sexual assault and child abuse. I I can't imagine the terrible things that you have to see every day, have to hear about every day. And to have that level of empathy to sit with that trauma.

and get them through the most difficult times in their lives. I mean, that is exactly the kind of person that should be sitting on the bench. You know, someone who can understand that type of trauma and treat people with empathy.

and humanistic values. So I think it's amazing the work that you do because that is, I mean, I, as a doctor, I never enjoyed that part of training. ⁓ I'll never forget when I did my pediatric rotation it's just, it's just hard to see children who are defenseless get abused.

Absolutely.

And for you to do that for people, for women, for children, I think is honorable, more than honorable. So thank you. Thank you for doing that.

Thank you.

Well, what can people do to support your campaign?

⁓ Well, at this point right now we are going door to door. We're doing a lot of canvassing. We're doing a big push before the primary on May 20th. And then another big thing that people can do if they're in the area and they want to help is sign up to ⁓ work on election day. To stand outside the polls, to greet voters as they come in and to hand out ⁓ literature and sample ballots. And that would be huge help.

Okay.

That's great. And what's the website that people can go to and volunteer if they want?

So

my website is gabbyformdj.com and we'll make sure that all that information is on there.

Absolutely and I'll make sure to promote that for you.

Thank you.

Do you have any hobbies?

Oh, I have lots of hobbies, too many. I'm involved in community theater. That's my biggest thing. I love theater and I have two small children now, so I'm not as involved as I used to be. But over the years, I've done a number of really wonderful productions with some groups in the area. So yeah, I love theater.

nice.

Uh-huh. OK.

Gabby Coleman, star of Stage and Screen. So like what's been your favorite role to play?

Oh, geez, that's a really good question. I did a production of Shrek the musical. Yes, I know it's one, it really is a great musical. The music is so good. And I was Fiona and it was, it was the best. It was just the best. And I've also, I recently,

My kid did Shrek the musical! It's so cute!

Of course you were. Of course.

I recently directed, recently meaning probably two years ago at this point, I directed a production of Little Women the musical. So that was a really great experience as well. Yeah. Yeah.

⁓ that's nice. That's so cool. What

a great hub. Well, I hope you can get into it again. I know I have kids as well. I three kids. And you push a lot of things to the back burner when you're raising children. So I hope that eventually you can get into that more in the future.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, and I'm hoping that my kids can get involved with me and

The Republican endorsed candidate running for magisterial judge has chosen to cross file the primary election coming up on May 20th. So could you just explain what that means to the listeners and viewers?

Sure. So cross filing very simply means that has filed to run on both parties primary ballots. So in Pennsylvania, this is only allowed in certain races, lower level court races and school board. So MDJ, Common Pleas and school board, I believe are the only three instances where you can cross file and run in both.

primaries.

Yeah, and in the primary on May 20th, on the ballots, there will not be a distinction, correct, whether they are a Democrat or a Republican for these judicial races. So they're going to see your name on the ballot and they'll see the Republican on the ballot and they won't be able to tell whether it's a democratically endorsed judge or a Republican endorsed judge, which is important, right? Because if you don't research the candidate, then you don't know necessarily who you're going to be voting for.

Right, exactly. so I think the idea behind the ability to cross file is that there are certain positions that should be nonpartisan, right? Judges should not, judges should be nonpartisan, school board should be nonpartisan. And by allowing these folks to cross file, you are asking voters.

Correct.

should be.

to research the candidate and not the party. I don't think that's necessarily what happens anymore. mean, we in a time of hyper partisanship. And I think it's a very idealistic view of the average voter.

I agree with you. I mean, I would even take it one step further. I think that, you know, the judicial system is just another branch of government and everything is political. And maybe today it seems hyper political in a lot of ways, but there have always been political undercurrents in the judicial system. And we can we'll talk about a little bit later as well. But but certainly it's important for the cross filing because

you you could potentially get knocked out of the race just in the primary by someone cross-filing, right? So if, if, if that's, and that's the goal, right? The goal is to knock out your opponent in the primary so you don't have to face them in the general election. So that's why if you're listening or watching this, you definitely want to remember Gabriella Coleman, because if you don't know who she is, you wouldn't know that she is a democratically endorsed candidate for this position.

Exactly. And that's the goal.

I think that party members wanna know that their candidates ⁓ share their values and beliefs. And I think...

personally think that voters want to go to the ballot box knowing what side their candidate is on. Even if ultimately you end up in a nonpartisan position, I think you want to know that your candidate shares your values.

I certainly do. I certainly do.

Well, you met your husband at the bench bar conference, correct? Now I would love for you to explain what exactly occurs at said conference and how you ran into your husband.

I did. I did.

⁓ what happens at Bench Bar stays at Bench Bar.

Bar Conference is, many counties do this, many county bar associations have an annual conference where the members of the Bar Association get to have social time but also continuing legal education with

the members of the bench in attendance as well. So for Delaware County, it takes the form of a three-day conference. We usually go to a fun destination. In the case of the year that I met my husband, we were at Sky Top Lodge up in the Poconos. But yeah, it's very nice. It reminds me of Dirty Dancing, the Lodge and Dirty Dancing. ⁓

nice.

⁓

Except not as hot.

Exactly. And not as much dancing. Not enough Patrick Swayze. ⁓

Yeah.

we'll say there were adult beverages involved. was the first night at Bench Bar and, there's a long story to it. I don't know if I'm willing to put it all out, air all my dirty laundry on the podcast, but I met my husband that first night of Bench Bar and we've been together ever since.

mean, what's more romantic than the law, continuing education?

I mean, it's just, it's a recipe for success. I love it.

Yeah, I swore

I would never, I swore I would never marry a lawyer. And, well, I mean, he, and he doesn't litigate. he does, estate law. So he writes wills and he, plans, plans to stay. He also does the administrative work, but he does not like to be in a courtroom. So he doesn't have that, that ego.

Gotcha.

that we litigators have. I'll accuse myself of that. I'll lump myself in with that statement.

Gotcha.

That is

a beautiful story. Thank you. Bench Bar Conference. Well, if anyone's listening and they want to become an attorney, they could meet their significant other there someday. That's great.

Thank you.

You could, mean, your chances of, if you become an attorney, your chances, unfortunately, ending up with another attorney are very high. ⁓

Unfortunately, very high.

That is hilarious. Well, we're gonna play a game called Bench, Bar, or Both. Okay? I'm gonna tell you something and you're gonna tell me is it found at a bench, like in a gym, at the bar, or both, okay? So, would you find a Tabata at a bench, bar, or both?

⁓

Okay. Mm, okay.

a bench. Right.

That is correct. It is a high

intensity training protocol. Tabata.

Yeah,

20 seconds on, 10 seconds off.

That is correct, but it kind of sounds like it could be at a bar, right? Like, I'll take the Tabata. No? Okay. All right, how about... There you go. Coming soon to a bar in Philly. All right, how about Dirty 30?

Maybe I'll have to, we'll have to infuse it.

hehe

30 30.

Dirty 30, bench bar both.

Both?

Well, it sounds like a cross-foot workout, but it's actually a classic birthday bar crawl. Dirty 30. There you go. How about, yeah, me too. Yeah, I did not do that. Yes. Yeah, oh God. Well, how about a shaker?

Oh, all right. Dirty 30. Didn't know. I missed that when I was 30. It was, that was the COVID year. I want to talk about that.

A shaker is definitely bar

⁓ It is actually both Yeah, so you can have a shaker at a bar, but also you know the little shakers for your protein drinks the shaker Yeah, that's that's a both That's right and ⁓ last one is Russian twist

⁓

⁓ okay. All right. Gotta hit those protein goals.

That is bench.

That is correct. It's a core exercise at the gym. There you go. Well, thanks for playing Bench Bar Both. First ever on the Zekely podcast.

Yeah. Thanks. Thank you.

So as an attorney, you have committed yourself to empowering women in the legal system. So where do you feel the most work is needed to help support women right now?

that's very good question.

Women are scared, know, and I include myself in that statement.

Are we, I'm sorry, we're talking specifically about where women need the most help in the legal system or just in general?

I mean, maybe it's a little of both. I mean, you see a lot of really terrible things in the practice that you perform. And so maybe it's a little of both.

I do.

So I pride myself in being trauma-informed in my practice. what being trauma-informed means is recognizing the effects of trauma on a person. And trauma can show up in different people in different ways. In the legal system, I think that if you're not trained,

in the ways, different ways that trauma can affect a person, you could very easily misread someone's reactions to questions or to the presentation of a piece of evidence or something as, well, they're lying, they couldn't possibly be traumatized, they didn't have a strong reaction, they didn't cry, they didn't, you know.

so I think that one way that we can show up for women is to, really learn all the ways that that trauma can affect a person and how people react to trauma, very varied ways that people react to trauma. I have nothing but respect for the judges, in Delaware County. but I see it sometimes where

you know, a case that I think is a slam dunk for a protection order or something gets thrown out because they just didn't seem upset enough, you know. So I think trying to train my fellow practitioners and members of the bench on the effects of trauma and being trauma informed is very important.

imagine a lot of that has to do with listening, a lot of listening and an affirmation and not judging them in a way that you know putting yourself in their shoes and probably you've seen so much of that trauma

Absolutely.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

that you pick up on things more than maybe someone else would, right? Like you see it repetitively all the time and you would hope that a judge hearing or seeing this would also relate in many ways, but probably sometimes they don't. They don't have that trigger that you have or that you wish people would have to pick up on that trauma response.

Right, absolutely.

Right. When I was back in law school, one of my internships, I was working for a domestic violence legal clinic. And I'd been working there for a few months and I had gotten so jaded because, you know, and every lawyer will say this, clients will lie to you. And I even to this day have clients lie to me. And I think I just had a run of a couple of really bad cases.

And I got to this place where I was just like, oh man, like I was just jaded. I was over it. And I was in talking to my supervisor and because I couldn't understand, I mean, this is a person who had been doing it for so long. And I was like, how? I've only been doing this for a couple of months. You've been doing it your whole career. How do you do this and still show up every day? And she said to me,

you'll feel that way until you lose your first client. And, you know, and then you'll never take it for granted. You know, you'll never take for granted somebody at their word. Sure, do clients lie to me? They lie to me all the time. But I never ever take them for granted because what if this is the time?

Yeah.

that I lose that client. And that has always stuck with me throughout my entire career.

Yeah, that's

powerful.

because violence against women is still too prevalent. It's too prevalent.

Yeah.

Wow. I'm just sitting with that right now. That's a very powerful message that your mentor said to you. And I would understand that that would probably fuel you to really heavily focus on what you're doing so that you don't miss anything. Because that, would weigh heavily on you, even if you did try your best but something happened.

Are

there any binge-worthy shows you're watching right now in between your work and campaigning?

⁓ binge worthy shows. Okay,

you're gonna, you're gonna laugh because it's a doctor show. ⁓ And you probably don't watch those. but I loved the pitt

Okay.

You're, you know, you're, so many people have told me about this show and I really have to watch it. I knew it. Yeah. Okay. Mm-hmm.

It's so good. And I loved ER.

And so of course, you know, having Noah Wiley back on my screen as a doctor is wonderful. I loved the pitt So yeah, I I recommend it.

I know.

Okay.

Okay, I'm gonna have to get

into it. I just finished up the second season of Shrinking. Oh, love it. Harrison Ford is so refreshing. It's really, really good. I actually asked my therapist, do you watch that show? Because I think it's so good. And she's like, no, but because you're saying I should watch it, I will. I think it's pretty realistic in terms of the messaging that they have.

⁓ such a good show. Yeah.

Yeah.

And I

think there needs to be more positive messaging about therapy in general. And I think it's good to have the humor and everything. But yeah, such a great show. I'm glad that you watched it too.

Yeah,

I agree. And it's just so uplifting. know, it's so nice to watch a show that makes you feel good. And I don't turn off, you know, I mean, because there are shows that I love, like, I love ⁓ The Handmaid's Tale. And of course, the last season of The Handmaid's Tale is on right now. And I'm like, so I really... Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

I know.

⁓ I know I can't watch it. I can't watch it. It's like too real. It's just

too real I can't watch that right now. I'm on the same page as you. All right, you're the 20th person who's told me about the pitt I'm gonna have to get into it. You've convinced me

Well, I can't wait to listen to a future episode ⁓ where you give your review.

Yes, I'm

sure if you like it, I'm going to like it.

Some people say, we

a little bit earlier, that the law should not be a partisan issue. But history has shown us time and time again that political ideologies often influence decisions in the judicial system. So you are being endorsed by the Democratic Party. How does being a Democrat influence your interpretations of the law?

Mm.

Mm.

Yeah, I'm a proud member of the Democratic Party and I have been since I turned 18 and I first registered to vote. And my values align with those of the Democratic Party. Judges have a duty to apply the law impartially, but that doesn't mean that they check their values at the courthouse door.

You know, as a Democrat, I have a strong commitment to civil rights and social justice and promoting justice for marginalized communities. Those beliefs are not going to prevent me from applying the law impartially. But it will mean that my judicial philosophy will

strive as much as it can for equity, meaning that you have to recognize the real world implications of the decisions that you make on the people that are in front of you. And to go back to something I said earlier, you have a responsibility to broaden access to the court system, to...

Mm-hmm.

people who feel sometimes rightly so that they've been left behind by it. And those are

values that I hold as a Democrat that don't

conflict with the impartiality of a judge.

I agree. It's a value system at the end of the day. It really is. mean, if you look at the arc of this country's history, there were judges who sat on the bench and made decisions that are counter to the culture that we live in today.

Mm-hmm.

Right, and to the extent that there is a party that is challenging the impartiality of the courts right now, it is not the Democratic Party. There was a judge that was arrested by the FBI in Wisconsin last week. That's really frightening and unprecedented, yeah.

I agree.

Mm-hmm.

unprecedented, unprecedented

and yes, it is an attack on the judiciary and so it starts locally. It starts locally and your position is just as important to me as a state supreme court or a supreme court seat

Well, do you have any summer plans for your family?

it's funny because I had a conversation last week with my husband. My brother-in-law is turning 40 this year and ⁓ he's planning a big trip to Oktoberfest, which is of course at the end of September. And I said to my husband, know, I really don't think it's a good idea for me to be going away at the end of September with the general election in November. I was like, how about...

Yeah,

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

We plan a trip after the election just to do nothing. We'll take all four of them. We can take the kids and go somewhere warm and sit and do nothing for a week, ⁓ which is not something that my husband and I do. are world travelers. Love to collect stamps in my passport. ⁓ And when I am traveling, I am up at the crack of dawn.

Yeah.

Sounds wonderful.

Mm-hmm.

I'm putting miles on my Apple Watch, you know, but I think this year, I think I need to sit down and have a drink with a tiny umbrella in it. You deserve it.

Mm-hmm.

That sounds great. I want to do that. Someday.

Thank you.

Someday. Well, I hope that for you. Certainly. I've already seen pictures of you with your kids out door knocking. So I know that life. I know that life. Yeah. But it's an

Yes, yeah. Yeah. They're great.

you know, people are more likely to answer the door when I have them in tow. ⁓

Yeah, well they have to be nice to you with kids there. They have to be nice

to you. You know, that's good. Keep them as long as you can.

Yeah.

What gives you hope?

What gives me hope? I have to have hope for my kids. I do not have the ability or the time to give in to despair because I have two little ones who rely on me. And I have to give them the very best life that I can despite the circumstances. So they give me hope.

on the same page. Absolutely. And my last question for you is what plans do you have to get yourself through these next few years?

it one day at a time.

and surround myself with good people.

one thing I did begin doing was just writing, I try to write down one or two sentences every day about the news of the day to document what's happening because I think it's important that it doesn't get lost.

Mm-hmm.

I'm trying to take an hour every day, at least an hour every day where I'm away from my phone.

⁓

yeah.

And just trying to stay present as much as I can with my children especially, and just be there, be with them. that's what I need to do to get through the next couple of years.

Absolutely.

Yeah, we need you need to we all need to spend time with family or friends or unplug absolutely Well, Gabriella Coleman running for magisterial district judge in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania I and Cliff and Clifton Heights. I'm so sorry. I Cannot vote for you because you do not live in my district, but I certainly would if I did and

And Clifton Heights, can't forget Clifton Heights.

Gabby is an example of why you need to research who is on your ballot because there are judges all over Pennsylvania that are going to be running and in order for you to know who the good ones are you should pay attention to your local Democratic committees because they're going to be advertising who they are endorsing and Gabby is being endorsed by her local Democratic committee. So I am super excited for your campaign. You're going to be on the ballot on May 20th and again on November 4th.

and I really hope that you are elected. And I watch your celebration party and you post all over social media. And then you will go with your husband and kids and get your drink with an umbrella in it.

Thank you.

Thank you Zeke. ⁓

Yes, yeah, that too. Very, very important part of the process.

Yes, yes. Well, thank you

so much for being here. I really appreciate it and good luck.

Thank you and thanks for what you're doing and can't wait to listen to that pitt recap episode. All right,

⁓ absolutely yes stay stay tuned

well thank you so much for joining me here on the Zekely podcast stay hopeful and get involved and until next time let's keep building a stronger Pennsylvania together