Did you know that February 27, 2026, marked 225 years of D.C.’s losing our right to have voting representation in Congress and the liberty to govern ourselves at the local level? That’s right: for 225 years of our nation’s 250-year history, we have suffered voter suppression in our nation’s capital.
As you go to the polls in our primary elections this June, please remember that we in D.C. have fought hard for the right to vote. In 1801, Congress not only took away our right to elect members of Congress to represent us, but they also took away our right to vote for president. We won it back in 1961. On election day in 1964, D.C. had more voters turn out than at least 3 states. Then we had to fight to vote for our local government which we won in 1974 when the D.C. Home Rule Charter went into effect. Under Home Rule we get to vote for the Mayor, our D.C. Council members, and our Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners. Turning out to vote says you are standing for democracy!
Your vote is your voice in a democracy, so it is time to lift your voice once again, to exercise your right to participate in the governing of our community. The D.C. League of Women Voters encourages you to find out about the candidates and vote your preference using D.C.’s new Ranked Choice Voting system. Use the League’s online guide to the upcoming election at www.Vote411.org/LWVDC and click on “Find What’s on Your Ballot”. Enter your address, select English or Spanish, then read about candidates and their answers to questions posed by League members. You can rank up to five candidates in each race, then save your choices to make an easy voting reference sheet. The League provides the Vote411.org Voter Guide as a public service. We never edit candidates’ responses, nor do we endorse any candidate or party.
All of our voices in the District are still suppressed in Congress, and we don’t have a vote in decisions that Congress makes about our lives. That’s why we also encourage you to educate your family and friends about D.C. Statehood, which will give us full citizenship and equality with the current 50 states.
Why Statehood for D.C?
● As a state, we will have 2 senators and a representative in Congress who can vote.
● We will have control over how we spend our own tax dollars and we will have a say in how our federal taxes are spent at the national level.
● As a state, we get to choose how we treat people who have broken our laws, no longer stuck with our citizens sent wherever the Bureau of Prisons decides.
● Our senators and representatives will have a say in who is on the Supreme Court, in decisions about war and peace, and will be able to work with other members of Congress to hammer out policies that we want to see enacted.
● Our governor will have control of our National Guard.
Right now, because we are a federal district, not a state, our streets are being patrolled by National Guard units from at least 8 states and federal agents are roaming our communities and
picking up our neighbors, often without due process. Our limited Home Rule is being undermined with some 66 bills, at last count, introduced in Congress that, if passed, would cripple our capacity to exercise even the limited self-governance we are allowed. The militarization of our streets is increasing as the presence of armed soldiers in our communities is normalized. In the face of these injustices, our communities are coming together, providing mutual aid, showing up in many ways to stand up for our full rights. We are practicing joy, planting native plants, making noise, singing uplifting songs, supporting and encouraging small businesses and our communities in small and large ways. Please keep on keeping on and exercise your right to vote during this election!