D.C. mayoral primary uses ranked voting
Janice Lewis-George has a lead over McDuffie, but ranking tallies could delay the D.C. primary winner.
Former D.C. City Council member Kenya McDuffie has conceded to Janice Lewis George in the Democratic mayoral primary, sending the Socialist Party candidate to the November general election.
Louis George is widely expected to win the November election in a city with a majority Democratic electorate.
“While the final certification process continues, it is clear that voters have chosen a different path,” McDuffie said in a statement Thursday. “Early this morning, I called City Councilwoman Janice Lewis George to congratulate her on her victory and wish her every success as she prepares for the general election.”
In the latest results released on Wednesday night, Mr Louis George received 52.85% of the vote, compared to 36.45% for Mr McDuffie. Rini Sampath and Gary Goodweather both received 3% of the vote, with 113,838 votes counted.
“I want to thank all the voters who participated in this election, the tens of thousands of Washingtonians who trusted our campaign, and all the volunteers, supporters, staff, families, community leaders, and neighbors who believed in our vision for the future of our city,” McDuffie said.
Louis George, who was born and raised in Washington, D.C., and joined the D.C. Council in 2020, has not publicly commented on McDuffie’s election concession.
She is now poised to succeed Muriel Bowser, the first woman to be elected to three terms as D.C. mayor. Bowser announced last year that he would not seek a fourth term.
President Donald Trump told reporters last week that he “doesn’t want” Louis George to be elected mayor and “maybe take back Washington.”
Louis George rejected Trump’s comments but said he was willing to work with the Trump administration to find a compromise.
“My approach to Donald Trump is to draw the line that D.C. autonomy and D.C. statehood are non-negotiable, and immigrant communities and neighbors and black youth need to be non-negotiable,” Louis George told the Guardian. “But if there is something we would like to work with, we would be happy to do so.”
Mike Stunson is a DC Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network.
