Shawn Griffiths
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The DC City Council voted Tuesday to honor the will of 73% of the District’s electorate and fully fund Initiative 83, which along with ranked choice voting, gives 85,000 registered independent voters the right to participate in taxpayer-funded primary elections.
The initiative was approved by voters in 2024, but when the DC Council set the FY2026 budget last year, they only funded the ranked choice voting portion. Tuesday’s budget vote ensures city residents get the full reform proposal they wanted.
“This is a victory that is more than a decade in the making,” said Lisa D.T. Rice, the proposer of Initiative 83 and the CEO of Grow Democracy DC.
“In 2014, the first ranked choice voting and open primaries bills were introduced in Council – together – but languished for years. In 2023, DC voters took our fate into our own hands and launched Make All Votes Count DC. We kept those two reforms together and put Initiative 83 on the ballot, and in 2024 – after 10 years of inaction – a supermajority of DC voters chose to reform our elections.”
Under a semi-open primary system, registered party members have to vote in their respective party’s primary. Independent voters—who have been locked out of these critical contests—can choose between a Republican, Democratic, or Statehood Green ballot.
Shawn Griffiths
In a city like DC, where Democrats hold nearly every possible elected position and Republican registration falls in the single digits, most races are effectively decided in the Democratic primary.
This means the primaries are the only elections where there is any real choice.
“I am thrilled the Council has demonstrated they agree with voters that the system works best when more people can participate,” said Rice.
“In an era of mass dilution of voting rights, this is a victory for our democracy in DC and across the country. DC voters have proven that, though democracy is not guaranteed, it can grow stronger if we never give up on fighting for it.”
The council faced increasing pressure from voters, reformers, and even legacy media outlets like The Washington Post, which penned multiple editorials calling out District officials for not honoring the will of voters.
Rice thanked council members Brooke Pinto, Christina Henderson, Charles Allen, Matthew Frumin, Janeese Lewis George, Brianne Nadeau, Zachary Parker, Robert C. White, Jr. for their support.
She specifically noted that Henderson picked up the torch for open primaries this year while Pinto led the effort last year.