Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced on Tuesday that she will not seek re-election. “For 10 years, you and I have worked together on an ambitious agenda to restore faith in our government,” Bowser stated. She emphasized the administration’s efforts to keep D.C. teams in D.C, raise school enrollment and graduation rates, and invest more money per capita in affordable housing than any other city or state. “We also brought our city back from the ravages of a global pandemic, and summoned our collective strength to stand tall against bullies who threaten our very autonomy,” she said.
The mayor highlighted her administration’s achievements, including driving unemployment to its lowest levels, achieving strong reserves, and completing the largest infrastructure project in city history with the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. “Let’s run through the tape and keep winning for D.C,” she added. The announcement came after months of navigating tensions with President Donald Trump over federal law enforcement presence in the city and negotiating a deal to bring the Washington Commanders NFL franchise’s home field back into the district.
Bowser’s public relationship with the president was far different during his first term, when she designated a two-block stretch outside the White House as Black Lives Matter Plaza, drawing the ire of Republicans. This year, after a push from a Republican congressman to jeopardize city funding over the plaza, her office removed it and focused on addressing the “devastating impacts of the federal jobs cuts.” She also tried to balance cooperation with the Trump administration in its decision to surge federal troops to the city in the name of fighting violent crime and enforcing immigration laws while staving off repeated GOP threats to repeal the city’s home rule.
“With a grateful heart, I am announcing that I will not seek a fourth term,” Bowser said. “For the next 12 months, let’s run through the tape and keep winning for DC.”
