Washington D.C. mayoral candidate Kenyan McDuffie formally stepped aside Thursday, conceding the Democratic primary contest to Janeese Lewis George.
Even as official vote certification remains ongoing, McDuffie released a statement acknowledging that “it is clear that the voters have chosen a different path.” The former D.C. Council member said he reached out personally to Lewis George to offer his congratulations. He also thanked those who supported his campaign and encouraged them to keep fighting for the city’s future.
“The campaign may be over, but the work of building a safer, more affordable, more prosperous city continues,” McDuffie said.
The Associated Press has not yet officially called the race. As of Thursday morning, Lewis George held just under 53% of the vote — only a few points above the 50% mark required to sidestep the ranked choice voting process.
The city is set to release preliminary ranked choice voting tallies on Sunday. The AP says it may call the race before that date if it becomes evident that ranked choice voting will not be needed.
Lewis George has made it clear she intends to take a firm stance against federal interference in Washington D.C.’s local affairs, potentially putting her on a collision course with President Donald Trump, whose administration has moved to challenge the city’s limited self-governance.
Should the current results hold, Lewis George is widely expected to win November’s general election in the heavily Democratic city. The winner would succeed Muriel Bowser, who opted not to seek a fourth term.
Lewis George would join Robert White Jr. — who captured the Democratic primary for the district’s congressional delegate seat — as top local figures expected to push back against federal ambitions for the city. Both candidates campaigned on taking a tougher stance than their predecessors against the Trump administration’s moves in the district, including its deployment of the National Guard on an open-ended crime-fighting mission.
“As mayor, I will work with anyone who makes D.C. safer,” Lewis George told cheering supporters Tuesday night, “but I will also stand up to Trump.”
Washington operates under limited autonomy, with federal leaders holding significant sway over local matters — including the authority to approve the city’s budget and legislation passed by the D.C. Council.
Trump has pushed further into that space, briefly placing the city’s police force under federal control and launching an ongoing law enforcement surge that included the National Guard. His efforts to shrink the federal government also rattled the capital region, leaving thousands of people without jobs. He has also been reshaping the city’s landscape by renovating well-known landmarks and attaching his name or likeness to buildings.
Lewis George, who describes herself as a democratic socialist and currently serves on the D.C. Council, has already drawn Trump’s attention. Last week, Trump threatened to place the city under full federal control if she won the race.
“Maybe we’d take back Washington, run it on the federal basis,” Trump said.
Lewis George, 38, is a third-generation Washingtonian. She has vowed to overturn an executive order issued by the city’s police chief that allows local law enforcement to work alongside Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, arguing the order “hurt the trust of our community.”
She has also pledged to use every tool available under the city’s home rule compact to resist what she described as authoritarian encroachments on local governance.
“We have legal tools we can use to fight back,” she told the AP before the vote. “And we know that when we have gone to court, we’ve won.”
Outgoing Mayor Bowser had been navigating a delicate balance between maintaining a working relationship with Trump while addressing the concerns of residents who felt she had not pushed back firmly enough on his actions. Meanwhile, Eleanor Holmes Norton — the 18-term, 89-year-old congressional delegate — faced growing criticism from those who said she had not been forceful enough in opposing the Trump administration’s moves against the district.
