Shawn Griffiths
WASHINGTON, DC—The June 16 primary marks the first time Washington, DC, will use ranked choice voting. It is getting a lot of attention, as is a wide-open mayoral race.
But for independent voters, the only race they get to participate in is largely getting overlooked.
It is the special election for an at-large seat on the DC Council — the one race in June where every registered DC voter can cast a ballot, regardless of party affiliation.
Here’s the thing: This is a contest that will be buried at the bottom of the ballot, so if independent voters want to participate, they will have to navigate a system that continues to lock them out of most elections—even though 73% of voters said ‘Yes’ to open primaries in 2024.
Independents Are Still Locked Out of the Main Event
DC voters overwhelmingly approved Initiative 83, a reform package that included ranked choice voting and semi-open primaries. Ranked choice voting is now in place and is being used for the first time citywide for the June 16 primary.
However, DC elected officials have refused to fund and implement the open primary part.
Shawn Griffiths
This means registered Democrats, Republicans, and DC Statehood Green Party voters can participate in their respective party’s primaries. However, registered independents are still denied access to these taxpayer-funded elections.
At the time of Initiative 83’s passage, about 1-in-6 voters were registered independent. Their numbers have only grown since.
Notably, DC is a one-party city. Almost all elections favor the Democratic Party. This is because about three-quarters of the electorate are registered Democrats. The party holds all elected positions that city rules will allow them to hold.
So, the Democratic primary in DC is not just another step in the process. In most cases, it effectively decides the outcome of the election. By the time independents are able to vote, it doesn’t really matter.
Their elected officials have been chosen for them.
In 2026, there is an exception and that is a special election for one of the city's at-large council seats.
The Race Everyone Can Vote In
The DC Council is composed of 8 seats representing each of the city’s wards, 4 at-large seats for regular members that are voted on by the entire city, and 1 additional at-large seat for the chairperson, who is also elected by citywide vote.
Technically, the Democratic Party does not hold every seat because the Home Rule Act only allows the majority party to hold 3 of the 5 total at-large seats. There is a way around this, though, and that is for Democrats to re-register and run as independents.
This is the case for Christina Henderson and Kenyan McDuffie. The special election on the June 16 ballot is for the at-large seat previously held by McDuffie, who vacated it earlier this year to run for mayor as a Democrat.
The winner of this election will not get a full four-year term right away. They will serve the remainder of McDuffie’s term and then have to face voters again in November to win the seat for a full term.
The winner in June and November will take a seat on the city council during a pivotal moment for DC:
- A budget squeeze,
- Pressure from Congress,
- Concerns about public safety,
- Housing affordability,
- Downtown recovery, and
- Continued debates over how much power DC residents actually have over their own government.
The last point is of particular note because Initiative 83 was approved by nearly three-quarters of the electorate, and yet city officials are deciding to what extent they will honor the will of voters.
But unlike the partisan primaries, this race is open to all DC voters—including independents.
It is a sharp contrast with the rest of the ballot. Independent voters cannot vote in the Democratic mayoral primary. They cannot vote in the Democratic at-large primary for the seat being vacated by Anita Bonds (who opposed Initiative 83).
They cannot vote in party primaries for attorney general, council chair, delegate, or ward council seats unless they registered with a party in time. But they can vote in the special election.
Three Candidates, One Ranked Choice Test
Three independent candidates are on the ballot in this special election: Doni Crawford, Elissa Silverman, and Jacque Patterson.
Crawford is temporarily holding the seat after being selected by the DC Council to fill the vacancy until the election. She previously worked for McDuffie and has pointed to her experience inside city government as a reason voters should keep her in the role.
Silverman is a former two-term at-large councilmember who lost her seat in 2022. She is running on a record that includes paid family leave, agency oversight, and a promise to return to the council with a focus on accountability and city services.
Patterson, a former ANC commissioner and current president of the DC State Board of Education, is positioning himself as a community-connected candidate focused on small business, education, and tough budget choices.
With three candidates on the ballot, voters can rank their preferences instead of picking only one. This will matter because Crawford and Patterson have reportedly formed a ranking alliance, encouraging their supporters to rank the other candidate second.
It is the kind of campaign behavior ranked choice advocates say is a benefit to elections: candidates thinking beyond their base support, looking for second-choice support, and building coalitions instead of relying only on attacks.
This race, alone, provides some evidence that the voting reform has already changed campaign incentives in the nation's capital.
The Buried Ballot Problem
The placement of the special election matters. If a race open to all voters is tucked away at the end of the ballot, there is a risk that voters will be confused about what voting rights they actually have on June 16.
Most of the contests on the ballot will be inaccessible to them and that is what they have been told. So, will they even turn out for this single election that will decide one of DC's at-large seats on the city council?
This is why voter education is important.
It is not enough to tell voters that DC is using ranked choice voting for the first time. Voters also need to know which races they are eligible to vote in, why one race is different from the others, and why they can only vote in a special election when they voted to open the primaries.
But they should also be informed of their rights to vote in that special election.
It is a race that shows the potential of what can and should be following the passage of Initiative 83: A broader electorate. More choice. Less party gatekeeping. More incentive for candidates to reach beyond the usual base support.