Why are we talking about voting when it’s April, not November? Because there is a special election going on and your vote counts. Today the polls are open for a special election to fill an At-Large City Council seat vacated by Phil Mendelson when he became the new Council Chair in the November election. Also on the ballot today is a referendum that seeks to amend the Home Rule Charter to give us more budget autonomy.
As our resident curmudgeon, Tim Krepp, noted last fall, only 46,967 people, or 10.3% of registered voters came out to the polls in the 2011 special election. We can do better than that and should because the At-Large seats have plenty of impact on our local lives.
Your choices are: Anita Bonds, Patrick Mara, Elissa Silverman, Matthew Frumin, Paul Zukerberg, and Perry Redd. It’s expected to be a close race between Bonds, Silverman and Mara. Depending on turnout, it could go just about any way. If you fail to show up today and your pick loses, you know who to blame. If you do vote and your pick still loses, at least you can feel good about having your voice heard.
If you don’t know who to vote for, you have several hours to do some research before the polls close at 8pm. One of your best resources to learn about each candidate is Let’s Choose DC a collaboration between DCist, Greater Greater Washington, and Prince of Petworth. DCist also has a handy voter guide with brief summaries about each candidate.
As for the referendum, unless you want Congress to keep telling us how to spend our own local tax dollars, you really should make the time to swing by the polls on your way home. If you’re not registered to vote, you can register there.
Find your polling location here.