At a recent mayoral forum, moderator Dwayne Lawson-Brown asked the candidates to use three words to describe their political style. “Principled. Resilient. Effective,” said Ward 4 DC Councilmember Janeese Lewis George. “Bold. Compassionate. Committed,” replied former at-large Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie.
That parsing of personalities and motivations belies the similarity of their origin stories: McDuffie and Lewis George — widely considered the two leading contenders in the Democratic primary for mayor — are both African American and are both native Washingtonians. They attended traditional DC Public Schools and hail from working-class families.
Interestingly, there was a time when McDuffie was a mail carrier; Lewis George’s mother also worked for the U.S. Postal Service. Due to a scarcity of economic opportunities, the postal service around the country was striver-haven for many Black people.
Oddly, that financial stability subsequently led each to law school. Prior to holding elected office, the two candidates had careers as prosecutors — she in Philadelphia and later with the DC Office of the Attorney General; he with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division
Not to be too flippant, it’s like one of those pictures when two people have worn the same outfit. The question that naturally pops up: Who wore it better?
In this case, the question for DC voters is: Who is better suited and better prepared to step into the mayoral suite in the John A. Wilson Building and guide the District into the second quarter of this 21st century? Is it one of the candidates who has never held a political office in DC? Is it someone who has been in the legislature for five years? Or is it the person who has been there for 13 years and served as chair pro tempore?
Initially, there were nine Democrats seeking to get onto the ballot for the office being vacated by the District’s three-term mayor, Muriel Bowser. After the ballot qualifying process, only seven were left standing: Gary Goodweather, Ernest Johnson, Vincent Orange, Rini Sampath and Hope Solomon, along with Lewis George and McDuffie.
In my reporting for this two-part series on the mayoral race, I have relied on select forums, published questionnaires and one-on-one interviews, specifically with Goodweather, Orange and McDuffie, to gain insight into candidates — their political, governing and management philosophies, their take on critical issues, and their vision for DC’s future. (Part 1 focused in large part on the candidacies of Goodweather, Orange and Sampath.)
This final installment of the series comes without Lewis Geoge’s direct engagement with me. Her campaign did not respond to my multiple requests for an interview. Consequently, the microphone belongs largely — though not exclusively — to McDuffie.
