Washington, D.C. voters headed to the polls Tuesday to pick a new mayor and Congressional delegate for the first time in more than a decade, with the leading candidates pledging to end cooperation with federal immigration enforcement and resist the Trump administration’s authority over the city.
President Donald Trump has already signaled he is watching closely.
The frontrunner in the Democratic mayoral primary, D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George, is polling more than 10 points ahead of her nearest competitor. She has vowed to “actively tell our employees to resist” if Trump again federalizes the Metropolitan Police Department and said she would work with the D.C. Attorney General to “defend D.C.” against federal action.
The second-place candidate, former D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie, drew his own line. “Washington, D.C., residents want and deserve a mayor who’s going to stand up and fight back, and that’s what I’m bringing,” McDuffie said in comments to POLITICO. He pledged to end all coordination between the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on his first day in office.
Trump responded to the prospect of Lewis George winning the race during remarks to reporters last week. “I wouldn’t like it,” the president said. “Maybe we’ll take back Washington, run it on a federal basis. We won’t put up with it. We’re not gonna lose our businesses.”
Lewis George’s campaign turned Trump’s comments into a campaign ad within hours of his remarks.
“We’re not going to get ICE off our streets by fearing this president,” Lewis George said. “We’re not going to protect our rights, or Home Rule, by complying in advance. Threatening Home Rule because you don’t like how residents are voting is an attack on democracy itself. The people of D.C. elect their mayor, and they want someone who’s gonna stand up to Donald Trump.”
Tuesday’s primaries will effectively determine the District’s next mayor and delegate. D.C. is a heavily Democratic city and the general election is expected to be a formality.
Mayor Muriel Bowser, in office since 2015, is not seeking a fourth term. Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, 89, has represented the District since 1991 and is not running for re-election.
Several leading candidates in the delegate race echoed the mayoral contenders in describing Trump’s use of the National Guard and federal immigration agents in the District as overreach. Robert White, a city council member and one of the top contenders for the delegate seat, has sharply criticized the federal law enforcement surge in D.C.
Both Lewis George and McDuffie indicated they would look for common ground with the Trump administration on economic development and other areas, while drawing hard lines on immigration enforcement and policing.
