Janeese Lewis George leads D.C. mayoral primary
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Janeese Lewis George with union leaders on stage. Photo: Cuneyt Dil/Axios
Janeese Lewis George holds a double-digit lead in D.C.'s mayoral race.
Why it matters: If Lewis George prevails, D.C.'s embrace of a democratic socialist would mark a 180 from Mayor Muriel Bowser's three terms of business-friendly leadership and what critics called a soft approach to President Trump.
The big picture: Council member Lewis George, who leads with 53% as of early Wednesday, campaigned on lowering skyrocketing power bills and expanding child care subsidies — echoing Zohran Mamdani's NYC playbook.
- AP had not yet called the race as of early Wednesday morning, reporting nearly two-thirds of votes cast.
Short of claiming victory, Lewis George told gleeful supporters at Howard Theatre, "The dream of America is still alive in its capital city."
- While Trump wasn't central to her campaign, Lewis George promised she "won't back down" to the president, who has laid off thousands of local workers, deployed federal troops citywide, and last week threatened another D.C. takeover if she won.
- The more moderate Kenyan McDuffie, who stood at 37%, tried portraying JLG as "too risky" as mayor, at a time when Trump could concoct creative ways to intervene in an increasingly left-leaning City Hall. It would take Congress to approve his more sweeping threat of a full takeover, which many observers find unlikely.
- But despite Trump's last-minute splash into the race, Lewis George is leading across town in all but the affluent, most Northwest neighborhoods of Ward 3.
What they're saying: "People are tired of hearing what government can't do," Lewis George said. "Let's show them what government can do."
- Inside the theater hall, between young volunteers bopping to music, you could bump into campaign aides who may staff D.C.'s first mayoral turnover in 12 years. "Now is our time to party," Lewis George declared.
Context: If JLG's lead slips under 50%, the Board of Elections will run through ranked-choice voting preferences until a winner can be declared with majority of the votes.
Zoom in: At 38, Lewis George is in the middle of her second term serving Ward 4, spanning Petworth to tony Chevy Chase, and corridors like Georgia Avenue that have witnessed big growth in the past decade — and turned out big for her, early results show.
- Her rise reflects a changed Washington. Her home ward, affectionately called Uptown, could produce its third mayor in 20 years. It's also a case study in D.C.'s demographics shift, along with Ward 1 to its south, where younger voters have reshaped neighborhoods like Columbia Heights and Mount Pleasant — and where she's running up her biggest margin.
- Building that momentum took an army of door knockers and organizers from dozens of labor unions. In the final days of the race, that union machine faced scrutiny when the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance fined her campaign $16,000 for improperly coordinating with unions and their affiliated super PACs.
- Lewis George's campaign called the 11th-hour charges "politically motivated."
What's ahead: The Democratic nomination is tantamount to victory in deep-blue D.C., but there'll be a general election in November.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.