Hi there,

Immigration raids are spreading across the country. The agencies meant to protect public health are being dismantled from within. Public broadcasting is being defunded... Today, Democracy Now!'s independent reporting is more important than ever. Because we never accept corporate or government funding, we rely on viewers, listeners and readers like you to sustain our work. Can you start a monthly donation? Monthly donors represent more than 20 percent of our annual revenue. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much.

Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

Federal Court Rejects Congressional Representation for District of Columbia

Listen
Media Options
Listen

A federal court panel ruled Monday that District residents do not have a legal right to a vote in Congress, dealing a blow to a coalition of community leaders and political activists who hoped their arguments about fairness and democratic principles would help overturn 199 years of federal tradition.

In its 2 to 1 decision, the panel acknowledged that it is an “inequity” that D.C. residents may not choose voting members in Congress as residents of the 50 states do. But the court majority said that the Constitution and Supreme Court have created a precedent for that inequity and that those seeking voting rights for the District should turn to the political process, not the courts.

Well, the issue of D.C. Congressional representation and home rule has made its way into the presidential election season. In a TV interview last month, Texas Governor George W. Bush expressed his position against full voting rights and statehood for the District. “I remained concerned about the District’s education system and the fact that many of its agencies continue to remain under the supervision of the courts,” Bush said. He added that “Because I respect the design of the Framers of the Constitution that our nation’s capital remain independent of any individual state, I do not support statehood for the District of Columbia.”

Guests:

  • Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delegate from the District of Columbia. She has been involved with the case Alexander et al. v. Daley et al., which wanted the court to order Congress to find a way to let D.C. residents to elect full Senators and Representatives. Call: 202.225.8050.
  • George Laroche, lawyer for Adams et al. v. Clinton et al., which wanted the court to make it possible for D.C. residents to choose statehood or unite with another state such as Maryland.

Related link:

Related Story

StorySep 11, 2025“Moment of Great Peril”: Jeff Sharlet on Killing of Charlie Kirk & Rising Political Violence in U.S.
The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top