D.C. mayor race: Who's endorsed Janeese Lewis George and Kenyan McDuffie
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Councilmember Janeese Lewis George and former Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie. Photo: Pete Kiehart for The Washington Post via Getty Images and Pete Kiehart for The Washington Post via Getty Images
In the D.C. mayor's race, Janeese Lewis George has consolidated the support of labor unions and progressive groups, while Kenyan McDuffie has won backing from real estate and business-friendly organizations.
Why it matters: We're getting close to the primary — and endorsements can help voters understand candidates through specific topic areas, like building more housing or supporting small businesses.
State of play: D.C. will begin sending mailing ballots to all registered voters next Monday.
- Ballot drop boxes will open on Friday, May 22, with early voting centers to come ahead of the primary on June 16.
The big picture: Lewis George's endorsements show a classic progressive coalition, with labor and left-leaning groups lending her manpower and boosting her fundraising reach.
- While a city investigation threatens her union ties, she's also broadened her appeal to get support from urbanist and pro-housing groups like Greater Greater Washington and D.C. YIMBYs.
- McDuffie, meanwhile, is backed by a business- and real estate-focused bloc, attracted to his promises of economic growth and support for public safety measures.
As of last month, both candidates had raised nearly $2 million.
How it works: Candidates usually answer detailed questionnaires to win the support of groups.
- I've linked to many of the endorsements below, which usually include questionnaire answers where you can compare and contrast candidates' answers. (If you love policy, nerd out!)
Kenyan McDuffie
Advocacy groups:
- Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors
- DMV New Liberals
- Associated Builders and Contractors Metro Washington
- District of Columbia Association of Realtors
- Opportunity D.C.
Prominent endorsers:
- Former Mayor Sharon Pratt
- Former D.C. Council Chair Linda Cropp
- Former Councilmembers Mary Cheh and Charlene Drew Jarvis
- U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland
- Former DOJ pardon attorney Liz Oyer
- Prince George's County Executive Aisha Braveboy
Janeese Lewis George
Labor unions:
- Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO
- Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689
- 32BJ SEIU
- 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
- UFCW Local 400
- Unite Here! Local 23
- Unite Here! Local 25
- Washington Teachers' Union
- Nonprofit Professional Employees Union
- Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
- AFGE Local 2725 - AFL-CIO
- Committee of Interns and Residents SEIU Healthcare
- Baltimore-D.C. Metro Building Trades Council
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 26
- IUPAT District Council 51
- LiUNA! Baltimore/Washington District Council
- AFGE Local 2978
- Local 500 SEIU
- District Council 20 AFSCME
- APWU
- District of Columbia Nurses Association
Advocacy groups:
- Sierra Club
- Free DC
- Jews United for Justice
- Greater Greater Washington
- Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America
- Working Families Party
- Our Revolution DC
- People for the American Way
- Lead Locally
- DC for Democracy
- Ward 1 Democrats
- DC YIMBYs
- DC Women in Politics
- DC Voters for Animals
- Casa in Action
- Rachel's Action Network
- Care in Action
Prominent endorsers:
- Former D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine
- Councilmembers Robert White, Brianne Nadeau and Charles Allen
- Former Councilmembers Tommy Wells and Yvette Alexander
PACs:
Endorsements were culled from candidate websites. There are five more hopefuls running in the Democratic primary, but they didn't list any stand-alone endorsements: Rini Sampath, Gary Goodweather, Ernest Johnson, Hope Solomon and Vincent Orange. Names are listed in the order they appear on the ballot.