Mayoral elections in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., is a political division coterminous with the District of Columbia, the federal district of the United States.[1] The enactment of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act in 1973 provided for an elected mayor for the first time in nearly a century.[2] Starting in 1974,[3] there have been thirteen elections for mayor and six people have held the office. The Democratic Party has immense political strength in the district. In each of the mayoral elections, the district has solidly voted for the Democratic candidate, with no margin less than 14 percentage points.

The mayor serves a four-year term.[4] In 1994, residents approved a ballot measure limiting the mayor to two consecutive terms,[5] despite simultaneously electing Marion Barry to his fourth term. In 2001, the D.C. Council repealed the measure, abolishing term limits for all elected positions.[6]

Mayoral elections[edit]

Key for parties
  Democratic Party – (D)
  Republican Party – (R)
  U.S. Labor Party – (L)
Mayoral elections in the District of Columbia 1974 to present
Year Winner Runner-up Other candidate[a] Ref.
Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes % Candidate Votes %
1974 Walter Washington (D) 84,676 80.50% Sam Harris (I) 7,514 7.14% Jackson R. Champion (R) 3,703 3.52% [7]
1978 Marion Barry (D) 68,354 70.16% Arthur Fletcher (R) 27,366 28.09% Susan Pennington (L) 1,066 1.09% [8]
1982 Marion Barry (D) 95,007 80.99% E. Brooke Lee Jr. (R) 16,501 14.07% Dennis S. Sobin (I) 2,673 2.28% [9]
1986 Marion Barry (D) 79,142 61.37% Carol Schwartz (R) 42,354 32.84% Brian Moore (I) 3,518 2.73% [10]
1990 Sharon Pratt (D) 140,011 86.12% Maurice Turner (R) 18,653 11.47% Alvin C. Frost (ST) 1,116 0.69% [11]
1994 Marion Barry (D) 102,884 56.02% Carol Schwartz (R) 76,902 41.87% [5]
1998 Anthony A. Williams (D) 92,504 66.16% Carol Schwartz (R) 42,280 30.24% John Gloster (ST) 2,312 1.65% [12]
2002 Anthony A. Williams (D) 79,841 60.61% Carol Schwartz (R) 45,407 34.47% Steve Donkin (STG) 3,240 2.46% [13]
2006 Adrian Fenty (D) 106,848 88.58% David Kranich (R) 7,517 6.23% Chris Otten (STG) 4,914 4.07% [14]
2010 Vincent C. Gray (D) 97,978 74.2% Write-ins[b] 29,599 22.42% Carlos Allen (I) 2,279 1.73% [17]
2014 Muriel Bowser (D) 96,666 55.15% David Catania (I) 61,388 35.02% Carol Schwartz (I) 12,327 7.03% [18]
2018 Muriel Bowser (D) 171,608 76.39% Ann Wilcox (STG) 20,950 9.33% Dustin Canter (I) 15,478 6.89% [19]
2022 Muriel Bowser (D) 147,433 74.62% Rodney Grant (I) 29,531 14.95% Stacia Hall (R) 11,510 5.83% [20]

Graph[edit]

The following graph shows the margin of victory of the Democratic Party over the runner-up in the 13 mayoral elections Washington, D.C., has held.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ For purposes of these lists, other candidates are defined as those who were in third place. Write-in totals are not represented.
  2. ^ More than 90 percent of the write-ins were for Adrian Fenty,[15] the incumbent mayor, who lost the Democratic primary against Gray and chose not to run under another party or as an independent.[16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Grogg, Robert (2013). "Introduction: Where Oh Where Should the Capital Be?". White House Historical Association. Archived from the original on July 4, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
  2. ^ "The District's Home Rule History and Statehood Goal". The Washington Informer. September 30, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  3. ^ Mathews, Jay; Bowman, LaBarbara (November 6, 1974). "Washington Winner in Mayoral Election". The Washington Post. p. A1. ProQuest 146114074.
  4. ^ Code of the District of Columbia § 1–204.21.
  5. ^ a b "November 8 General Election". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 18, 1994. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  6. ^ Chan, Sewell (October 1, 2008). "When a City Council Repealed Term Limits". The New York Times. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  7. ^ "DC Mayor Race - Nov 05, 1974". OurCampaigns. September 16, 2010. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  8. ^ Scammon, Richard M.; McGillivray, Alice V. (1979). America Votes 13. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press. p. 380. ISBN 978-0871871831.
  9. ^ "DC Mayor Race - Nov 02, 1982". OurCampaigns. September 16, 2010. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  10. ^ "DC Mayor Race - Nov 04, 1986". OurCampaigns. September 16, 2010. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  11. ^ Scammon, Richard M.; McGillivray, Alice V. (1991). America Votes 19: A Handbook of Contemporary Election Statistics. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press. p. 487. ISBN 978-0871875587.
  12. ^ "November 13 General Election". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 13, 1998. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  13. ^ "Certification Summary - Candidate". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 21, 2002. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  14. ^ "Certified Official Results Report" (PDF). District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 21, 2006. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  15. ^ Austermuhle, Martin (November 3, 2010). "Fenty Write-In Campaign Drives Mayoral Write-Ins To Nearly 23 Percent". DCist. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  16. ^ Fisher, Max (September 15, 2010). "The Rise and Fall of DC Mayor Adrian Fenty". The Atlantic. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "General Election 2010 - Certified Results". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 19, 2010. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  18. ^ "General Election 2014 - Certified Results". District of Columbia Board of Elections. December 3, 2014. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  19. ^ "General Election 2018 - Certified Results". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 15, 2018. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  20. ^ "General Election 2022 - Certified Results". District of Columbia Board of Elections. November 30, 2022. Retrieved December 26, 2022.