草莓传媒

I鈥檓 proud to serve as the Ward 2 Councilmember, and I鈥檓 the youngest person ever elected to D.C. Council and the first woman to ever hold my seat. I serve as the Chair of the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety. My experience as a legislator on the D.C. Council, working with our communities across D.C. to tackle big problems from public safety to having a strong economy to investing in our schools, as well as my experience as a lawyer working for the D.C. Attorney General鈥檚 office and on Capitol Hill in the Senate equip me to be D.C.鈥檚 next Congressional Delegate.

I have three priorities as your Delegate: first, to protect D.C.鈥檚 autonomy from attacks from Donald Trump and congressional Republicans, who have made our city their punching bag. And we need our Delegate to pick up the baton in the race to statehood. Secondly, we need to build a city where every resident can find a good job and afford a home to rent or own that is safe. We are in the middle of an affordable housing crisis, and we need to take decisive action, like implementing my Breaking Ground D.C. plan. Finally, we deserve a city where every single resident feels safe, and I will use this seat to make progress on all of those important goals.

Every single issue facing our city is exasperated due to our lack of statehood and voting representation in Congress. We need to build a national movement to elevate this issue to the top of the Democratic agenda in every single federal race across the country so we can build a pro-statehood majority in the House and Senate. And that鈥檚 why, before I鈥檓 sworn in January, I鈥檒l be working to build that majority and help Democrats retake the majority. In the first month, I hope to secure a vote in the Committee of the Whole. I will also leverage my relationships on the Hill and legislative record that I have already built and passed with the Council to ensure that other members understand who we are and what we鈥檙e working toward in D.C.

I believe that D.C. Statehood is one of the most important civil rights issues of our time, and that we need young people across the country 鈥� not just in D.C. 鈥� mobilized to make it happen. Earlier this year, I met with the chapter heads of Young Democrats from across the country and urged them to adopt D.C. statehood as their primary policy goal and I鈥檓 so grateful they have done so. This is the approach I鈥檒l take as Delegate 鈥� working with other young people like us in states across the country to build a national movement to deliver statehood. That is why it is so important to send someone to the Hill with a legislative record around safety and the economy so we can ensure our tent includes all Democrats and ensure they don鈥檛 turn their back on the District again.

Housing affordability 鈥� for renters and homebuyers 鈥� is core to my campaign. It鈥檚 why I released my Breaking Ground DC plan, which you can read on my website, and am still the only candidate in this race with a housing affordability plan. I encourage you to read the full plan, but here are a few of the pieces I think are most important: reworking our tax system to encourage building housing of all types, especially near Metro and bus stops; making rent tax deductible up to $15,000 a year; legalizing row homes in all parts of the District; expediting commercial to residential conversions; creating tax abatements for first time homebuyers who are long-term D.C. residents; and re-imagining the D.C. Housing Authority so that it鈥檚 finally delivering for the residents who need it.

As the Ward 2 Councilmember, I represent Downtown DC and the more than 50% of businesses that call the city home. The pandemic greatly harmed our downtown and our city, and even today, downtown offices remain at an eyewateringly high 50% vacancy rate. Congressional Republicans and Donald Trump are doing everything they can to hamstring D.C. by sending federal agencies 鈥� and our neighbors who work at them 鈥� away from D.C. First, we need to fight back to ensure we keep our federal agencies close to home. Second, we need to encourage businesses to bring workers back to the office. And third, we need to acknowledge that we do live in a new economic reality, and make it easier for downtown commercial businesses to transition to residential or other commercial space, by implementing my Breaking Ground D.C. plan. I am focused on diversifying our economy so we can attract new industries to D.C. to hire our residents.

It means that we need a member of Congress who can build coalitions to actually get things done. After six years on the Council, I鈥檝e passed dozens of pieces of legislation to make our city safer, to make it easier for businesses to thrive, and to improve our schools for all our children. Without a final vote on the floor, you need someone in this seat who will outwork everyone else 鈥� building coalitions, mobilizing activists and advocates, and hitting the pavement to get results. That鈥檚 what I鈥檝e done for the last six years on D.C. Council, and that鈥檚 what I鈥檒l do in the House of Representatives.

I am so grateful for the incredible legacy that Congresswoman Holmes Norton is leaving us 鈥� first as an icon of the Civil Rights Movement, and later as our Warrior on the Hill and an incredible voice for all of us in D.C. Her shoes will never be filled, but I take a great deal of inspiration in her ability to create change for the people of D.C., even without a final vote on the floor. Southwest D.C. and the new Commanders Stadium would not exist without her ability to negotiate land deals which have changed the skyline of our city and created new neighborhoods for Washingtonians to live, work, and play 鈥� and I hope to build on that legacy by transferring more federal land to D.C. and the private sector to create new neighborhoods in the parts of town left behind by GSA. In addition, I will work every single day to complete her life鈥檚 work by securing statehood once and for all for D.C.

I was proud to support the Commanders deal, unlike my opponent, Robert White. The Commanders belong in D.C. 鈥� and I was proud to lead the effort to ensure that the deal included the building of 6,000 new units of housing, with dedicated affordable housing units and to ensure we are contracting with small and local minority and women owned businesses as a part of the deal. And I am also proud to have authored the provision to ensure that 15% of the jobs in the stadium 鈥� everything from concessions to hospitality to management 鈥� go to returning citizens, to help them get back on their feet and learn a trade.

One of my favorite D.C. traditions is the High Heel Race in Dupont Circle. Our LGBTQ+ history in D.C. is so central to who we are and it鈥檚 always one of the most inclusive and celebratory nights of the year to bring thousands of residents together, watch some truly impressive sprinting in heels, and be in community together, with pride.

I am a huge lover of musical theater! Last year, I performed in a wonderful tradition with the Shakespeare Theater called 鈥淲ill on the Hill鈥� which brings together politicians and actors to remind us all that the arts are for everyone. It is one of the reasons I fight so hard to invest in funding for arts for all of our kids so that all children can have access to activities that are enriching.