Three days out, D.C. voters face their most complicated ballot in decades
Ranked-choice voting, a wide-open mayor's race, a $650 million budget hole, and a White House threat to end home rule all land on the same ballot Tuesday. Here is what D.C. residents are actually deciding.
In brief
Why this ballot is unlike anything D.C. has seen in a generation
Tuesday is three days away. D.C. residents will walk into their polling places and face something genuinely new: a ranked-choice ballot for mayor, two at-large council seats, a council chair race, and several ward contests, all under a voting system the city has never used in a general election. At the same time, whoever wins the mayor's race inherits a city staring at a projected $650 million funding gap and a president who has, repeatedly and publicly, threatened to end the District's right to govern itself.
That combination, a structural change to how votes are counted, a leadership vacuum at the top, and a federal government that has already demonstrated it will act, makes November 3 matter in ways that go well beyond who gets the corner office at the Wilson Building.
As of Friday, 77,480 mail-in and early in-person votes had already been cast, representing 16 percent of D.C.'s 486,000 registered voters. Early voting ran through Sunday, November 1. In-person early vote centers were open Monday, October 26 through Sunday, November 1, from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., with Election Day polls running 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
The ranked-choice question
The 2026 election is the first D.C. mayoral election to use ranked-choice voting, following the approval of Initiative 83 in 2024. That is not a small thing. The mechanics are unfamiliar to most voters, and the results could take days to finalize.
D.C. voters can choose to rank between one and five candidates for each eligible office, in order of preference, with their favorite candidate as their first choice. If no candidate gets over 50 percent in the first round of counting, lower-performing candidates are eliminated and their votes are redistributed until one candidate clears that threshold.
The at-large council race adds another layer of confusion. Under the current ranked-choice system, voters get one vote for At-Large Councilmember, even though two candidates will ultimately win. Previously, voters got two votes, and that has changed with the new system. The NBC Washington voter guide noted that this will be the first general election with ranked-choice voting, and it has raised questions about ballot wording in the at-large race, where four candidates are competing for two seats, generating considerable confusion.
Races using ranked-choice voting include the mayoral race, the two at-large D.C. Council seats, the Ward 1 and Ward 5 Council races, the D.C. delegate to Congress, and the Ward 6 State Board of Education race. Because of ranked-choice voting and mail-in ballots, results could take longer than usual to finalize.
The DC primaries in June gave residents their first taste of the system. The primary saw its highest turnout in 30 years, and more votes counted meaningfully because of ranked-choice voting. Whether that enthusiasm carries into November, in a city where Democrats hold such a commanding registration advantage that the June primary effectively decides most races, is an open question.
The mayor's race: a frontrunner, a budget crisis, and a president watching
Janeese Lewis George won the Democratic nomination and will face Robert L. Gross of the D.C. Statehood Green Party and independent Rhonda Hamilton. Lewis George won 54 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary in June. She is widely considered the frontrunner.
Lewis George is a card-carrying member of the Democratic Socialists of America, in the mold of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose endorsement she sought. That ideological position has shaped almost every external pressure on this race.
In her widely publicized position as a Democratic Socialist, Lewis George has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump, who has called her a "communist adherent" and has threatened to take steps to revoke D.C.'s home rule local government and place it under federal control if she wins election as mayor.
Lewis George will also have to contend with the fact that Trump, in August 2025, seized control of Washington's police department under Section 740 of the 1973 Home Rule Act, which allows a president to take control of Washington's police for emergency situations for up to 30 days unless Congress grants an extension. After 30 days, the mayor regained control of the department. That episode showed the city exactly how far the White House is willing to go.
Trump's broader threat to end home rule would be largely an empty one, as only Congress could place D.C. under the federal government's direct control by repealing the Home Rule Act. But Republicans control the House and Senate, and both chambers have shown willingness to interfere in D.C.
Lewis George has tried to thread a difficult needle on the question of working with Washington. The Democratic candidate confirmed that her team and the Trump administration have already been in contact. "Our team has reached out; their team has also reached out. I am looking forward to working with the administration as mayor of D.C.," Lewis George said. (Attributed, per WJLA/7News.)
She has also pledged to end cooperation between D.C. police and federal immigration enforcement during her first 100 days in office. Those two positions, outreach to the Trump White House and a promise to block ICE cooperation, are in real tension, and she will have to manage that from day one.
Unlike governors, D.C.'s mayor has limited authority to challenge the federal government, according to Michael Fauntroy, an associate professor of policy and government at George Mason University's Schar School of Policy and Government. "The mayor has to fight with one arm tied behind their back," Fauntroy said. (Analysis.)
On the other two candidates: independent Rhonda Hamilton questioned whether the city's biggest problem is a lack of revenue or how it manages existing money. "We've been managing a $22 billion budget. We're supposed to spend the money, but when the money is not giving you the return on your investment, you don't just keep pouring it out," Hamilton said. D.C. Statehood Green Party candidate Robert L. Gross told 7News he would launch a government audit within his first 90 days and create public dashboards that let residents see how departments spend money and whether agencies meet expectations.
The budget is not abstract
The next mayor will own the numbers from the moment she takes office. D.C.'s general sales tax is already scheduled to increase from 6 percent to 7 percent on October 1, 2027, and Council Chairman Phil Mendelson has warned that the District faces an estimated $650 million funding gap in fiscal year 2028 to maintain programs currently supported by one-time funding.
Without additional resources, the District could face difficult decisions about funding for child care, health care, education, and after-school activities.
That pressure sits right alongside the agency overspending problem the Council tried to examine this week. As D.C. leaders consider the possibility of higher taxes and cuts to city services, lawmakers are questioning why some government agencies continue to exceed their original budgets by tens of millions of dollars. Council member Patterson raised concerns about agencies that repeatedly require additional funding after their budgets have already been approved. "There are agencies that overspend year after year after year after year, and you have to then ask yourself, how can that be?" Patterson told lawmakers. (Verified, per WJLA.)
Patterson suggested lawmakers consider changing how they review transfers of money between agencies and programs. Those transfers, known as reprogrammings, can allow agencies to receive additional funding during the fiscal year.
The Bowser administration sent no one to that hearing. Mendelson said he was "shocked that the mayor withheld witnesses from this hearing to talk about the budget." The mayor's office responded, "No comment at this time." (Attributed, per WJLA.) Whoever wins Tuesday inherits that unresolved standoff.
The council races and ANC ballot
The 2026 D.C. Council election will also be the first council election to use ranked-choice voting following the implementation of Initiative 83. Seven council seats are on the ballot. Phil Mendelson is running for a fifth term as chairman.
D.C. is believed to be unique among U.S. cities with 46 Advisory Neighborhood Commissions consisting of 345 single-member districts across the city, where unpaid commissioners are elected for two-year terms. All of those seats are on Tuesday's ballot as well. Independent and third-party candidates are still in the running, and voters will also weigh in on nonpartisan neighborhood ANC races and a ballot initiative about foie gras.
On that initiative: Initiative Measure No. 86 would prohibit force-feeding birds and ban foie gras sales in D.C., with early voting having started October 26, 2026.
Health coverage window opens the same week
Lost a bit in the election noise: Mayor Bowser announced that the 2027 open enrollment period for DC Health Link begins Sunday, November 1, with residents encouraged to sign up for health insurance at DCHealthLink.com, the District's online state-based health insurance marketplace. This open enrollment period has 24 DC Health Link private health insurance plans available, in addition to the Healthy DC Plan, and enrollment runs through January 31, 2027.
The Healthy DC Plan is for residents whose incomes are up to two times the federal poverty level and includes vision and dental benefits. All plans cover doctor visits, hospital stays, mental health care, prescriptions, preventive care, and more. The timing means whichever administration takes over in January will be mid-enrollment, with no ability to adjust plan offerings or pricing on short notice.
What D.C. Residents Should Watch
Tuesday, November 3, polls open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Ranked-choice ballots apply to the mayor, council chair, Ward 1, Ward 5, both at-large council seats, the D.C. congressional delegate race, and the Ward 6 State Board of Education contest. Bring patience: final ranked-choice tallies for competitive races will not be available election night.
Ranked-choice at-large council seat confusion. You get one vote, but two people win. Read the ballot instructions carefully before you mark anything.
The budget gap is real. Council Chairman Mendelson has put a $650 million FY2028 shortfall on the record. Watch whether the next mayor proposes specific cuts or new revenue in her first budget submission, likely spring 2027.
Federal control threat. Trump needs Congress to revoke D.C.'s home rule. Watch whether House or Senate Republicans move any legislation in that direction after November 3, particularly if Lewis George wins by a wide margin.
MPD and ICE cooperation. Lewis George has pledged to end the arrangement in her first 100 days. Watch for an executive order or a formal policy memo from the incoming administration in late January or February 2027.
DC Health Link open enrollment runs through January 31, 2027. If you are uninsured or your plan changed, go to DCHealthLink.com now, before the post-election news cycle buries the deadline.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
