Courtesy DCVotes.org
Mayor Adrian Fenty at a Capitol Hill rally last Thursday.

Supporters push for a March vote

by MESHA WILLIAMS

Walking amidst the bustling corridors of the Cannon House Office Building, Selvon M. Waldron hoped his sales pitch would be enough to garner D.C. a victory in getting voting rights in Congress.

The city lost its effort in December to gain full voting rights when legislation died after House Republicans didn’t consider it before the 109th Congress ended.

But now supporters are moving ahead to keep the issue in the forefront for a March vote. That includes Waldron, who came to Capitol Hill to participate in Congress Day.

Dressed in a dark suit, the University of the District of Columbia junior visited several congressional offices trying to drum up support from lawmakers. His first stop was the office of Rep. Lois Capps (D-Calif).

“Good morning, I’m here with D.C. Vote and would like to speak to the congresswoman about getting voting rights here in D.C.,” he said, glancing down at his packet of materials.

“Sorry, she isn’t in,” said Amy Fischer, healthcare representative, who was standing at the front desk. “But she fully supports you guys and what you’re doing especially considering that most of us are D.C. residents,” she said.

Waldron’s next stop was to Rep. Geoff Davis (R-K.Y.), where the student gave the same spiel and asked, “Is the congressman in?”

A male assistant looked around skeptically and said, “No, he isn’t, would you like to schedule an appointment?”

Waldron then went into full salesman mode, asking, “Do you think the congressman would support voting rights for D.C.?”

Assistant: “I have no idea if he would support it,” he said. “I’ve seen things come across the office about it.”

Waldron gave his thanks and left a card as a reminder with the assistant.

He then headed off to other parts of the Cannon building (not before getting lost several times) before he found the other members of Congress. He had no luck at his next stop, but still wasn’t getting discouraged.

“It’s kind of like being a salesperson, but I’m selling democracy,” he said, smiling broadly.

The Issue

The D.C. Voting Rights Bill would give eight-time Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D-D.C.) the ability to vote on the House floor. She has served as the non-voting delegate since 1991 and she can only introduce legislation, serve on committees and speak on the House floor.

The city has a long history dating back to 1871 of having an elected official serve in the House without having full voting rights.

Congress established territorial government in the city around that time, determining how the district is represented on the federal level.

In the mid-1870s, the non-voting delegate was abolished and later reinstated in 1970. A push for full voting rights for D.C. surfaced in 1978; however, it took almost seven years before a constitutional amendment was voted on and later failed in Congress.

The district has an estimated population of 572,000 residents. The American Samoa, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are the other U.S. territories that do not have voting rights in Congress. Supporters and opponents of the D.C. voting rights act have strong opinions as to what the issue means for the city.

Doxie McCoy, spokeswoman for Congresswoman Norton, said having full voting rights for D.C. would have made a difference in the authorization of President Bush sending troops overseas to the Middle East.

“In itself the vote is important because D.C. residents have been sent out on the front lines to fight the war,” she said. “D.C. residents deserve the opportunity to have a vote.”

Illir Zherka, executive director of D.C. Vote, a non-profit organization established eight years ago to help move the issue forward, described getting full voting rights as a “revolutionary step in delivering basic civil rights for district residents.”

His organization helped sponsor Congress Day, bringing out the city’s elite, including Norton and Mayor Adrian Fenty. City council leaders such Vincent Gray and Carol Schwartz were also on hand to give support.

Shouts of “Free D.C.” rang inside the Cannon ballroom as the standing-room-only crowd, filled with district residents, young and old, mingled.

In addition, potential candidates for city council offices were chatting with residents.

Vivian McCollough, a retired D.C. public school teacher, who represents a group by the same name, said she’s disappointed that voting rights haven’t become a reality. But with big time support from top leaders she believes that will change.

“I think Mayor Fenty is one of the best things to happen to D.C. and he will help to move the issue forward,” she said.

Fenty said getting the city full voting rights is a top priority in his administration.

However, despite supporters’ enthusiasm, many believe that the issue will continue to be a hard sell.

Taxation without Representation

In recent months, researchers like Garry Young have said that lawmakers in Congress have bigger issues requiring their attention this session.

He serves as interim director of the Center for Washington Area Studies at George Washington University, a group that researches activities pertaining to the district.

He said the passage of voting rights is more of a symbolic gesture increasing the delegates’ status in Congress.
Even though Norton has served in the House for over a decade and has built seniority, she would be held in higher esteem among her peers, he said.

“It will give her a legitimate vote on the floor and in the eyes of members of the House she would no longer be viewed as a second class citizen,” Young said. “Now she would move to first class.”

He emphasized that where full voting rights counts is in the Senate, where budgets and laws are approved, and getting full representation in the House is a modest step forward towards getting someone to represent D.C. in the Senate.

Then there are the lingering legal questions about the voting rights issue.

John Fortier, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a non-profit think tank organization in Washington, said the constitution didn’t intend for the nation’s capital to be a state.

“To give D.C. full representation is not a good idea because it is not a legitimate way, it’s just not constitutional,” he said.

Fortier said if the district wants to achieve full voting rights, then leaders should address changing how the city’s constitution is tied with Congress.

However, he admits it is a tough sell because it is hard to do.

The second way to go about this is to have the district remitted to Maryland, he said. However, many supporters dismiss the idea.

“Anybody who wants to believe that trying for a constitutional amendment would be better is just foolish because there is no evidence that it would pass,” said Mike Shor, former chair of the Voting Rights Committee of Democracy, a supporter of the district getting full representation in Congress.

Supporters still believe that garnering bi-partisan support is the best way to move the issue forward.

An odd pairing

The D.C. voting rights issue gained momentum last year when Norton and Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA.), introduced a compromised bill calling for the House to increase from 435 to 437 members, netting a new seat for D.C. and another one for Utah.

They have revised legislation for this session of Congress.

Supporters said the bill is a good balance because registered voters in D.C. primarily vote Democratic, and registered voters in Utah primarily vote Republican.

Utah legislators approved a plan that would exchange a seat with the district. The plan calls for Utah’s congressional district to be divided into four areas, creating one liberal and three conservative areas.

However, for Utah lawmakers, the new congressional map didn’t come without major partisan bickering.

“We look like the Tom Delay of Utah with all the goofball partisan politics here,” said Jeff Bell, spokesman for the state Democratic Party in Utah.

“We had an opportunity to show what good government was and the Republican delegation really blew it,” he said.

Locally, some political leaders believe the compromise isn’t the best deal that D.C. can get.

Mike Brown, D.C. shadow senator-elect, supports the city getting voting rights, but has expressed reservations about the compromised bill with Utah leaders.

He described the issue as being complicated and believes D.C. should get more than one vote in Congress, calling for three votes having at least two representatives in the House and one in the Senate. However, since Mayor Fenty has asked for leaders to unify behind the issue, Brown said he will support it.

“I think it’s important to work together as a team,” he said. “I support D.C. getting full voting rights (though this isn’t particularly my favorite piece of legislation). I think it’s good if we can get it done.”

As the shadow-elect senator, he wants to raise enough money to develop a national campaign to raise the profile of the issue in order to garner support from other states.

Not fazed

Shelvon M. Waldron said he is unfazed by all the political maneuvering because he thinks it is critical that D.C. have a strong voice in Congress.

But he is disappointed that he didn’t get to personally speak to lawmakers on his visit.

When he visited the office of Rep. Carol Shea Porter (D-N.H.), he was told she was speaking on the House floor.

However, her senior policy advisor told him that the congresswoman has the legislation in her “yes pile,” so that makes him hopeful.

“It’s been a great experience to meet folks to try to affect change in the district,” he said.