By: Miriam Edelman In the late 2000s, some D.C. leaders and Members of Congress across the political spectrum supported legislation, such as H.R. 1905  – District of Columbia Voting Rights Act of 2007, that would  have given the District of Columbia and Utah each a vote in the House of Representatives. However, such compromise legislation would not have affected the Senate. DCNOW’s blog piece, entitled “D.C.’s Centuries-Long  Disenfranchisement Is Unfair,” is about that legis

By: Miriam Edelman             For the first time in history, four of the top five executive branch leaders of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) are women. The November 2025 elections increased the number of women in these top three roles from three to four. Since Virginia  inaugurated its Governor and Lieutenant Governor on January 17, 2026, D.C.’s Mayor, Maryland’s Lieutenant Governor, Virginia’s Governor, and Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor are women. A

By: Miriam Edelman As the U.S. just had off-year elections in November 2025, election winners are taking office. When many people become government officials, they swear an oath to the U.S. Constitution. This post follows up on DCNOW’s blog piece, entitled “DCNOW  Congratulates Women Who Made History in Recent Elections.”   One of the winners in the earlier article is Kaoly Her,  the first female Mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota. At Her’s inaugural swearing-in ceremony  on Januar

By: Miriam Edelman Officially, for the  first time, Washington, D.C., voters will use ranked-choice voting in D.C.’s upcoming June 2026 primary elections. This piece follows up on DCNOW’s blog pieces, including “Initiative 83  is Law,” “Update on  Ranked-Choice Voting in D.C.,” and “Another Update  on Ranked-Choice Voting in D.C.”   On November 24, 2025,  the D.C. Council’s Committee on Executive Administration and Labor, chaired by Anita Bonds, held a public roundtable on “B