For years, organizers in Philadelphia encouraged the formerly incarcerated to vote for criminal justice reforms.

They notched successes that included the election and reelection of District Attorney Larry Krasner and a package of criminal justice reforms. There has always been pushback, however, including Krasner’s impeachment.

This election, organizers have a new concern and a new talking point as they canvass communities affected by mass incarceration: Project 2025.

The wide-ranging policy document from the Heritage Foundation has been disavowed by the Trump campaign, but groups in Philadelphia fear it could still be used as a road map for a federal power grab.

“Under Project 2025, the Justice Department would be used to undermine and crack down on so-called progressive district attorneys,” said Saleem Holbrook, the executive director of criminal justice advocacy group Straight Ahead. “It was hard enough fighting that battle on the state level. We can only imagine how difficult it would be to fight that battle on the state and federal level.”

Pushback on Project 2025

Much of the debate over the........

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