With Republicans winning the government trifecta in 2024, Washington, D.C., is gearing up for how Republican rule could change the district.
Washington, D.C., is the bluest area in the country, with President-elect Donald Trump winning just single digits in his best election results yet. Now, district officials fear that Republicans will turn their ire on the district, cutting down on its autonomy and changing its laws.
“I think there’s reason to be concerned,” independent District of Columbia Councilwoman Christina Henderson told The 51st. “I think in this entire election they wrote down exactly what they are going to do. The question is whether they execute it for D.C.”
While Trump did little with Washington, D.C., during his first term, the city has drawn his ire since leaving office. Residents saw a stark rise in crime after the pandemic, more so than other urban areas around the country, though it’s now trending downward. That, and the council’s overhaul of the criminal code in 2022, is playing into Trump’s vision that crime in the city is out of control.
“I am calling for a federal takeover of this filthy and crime-ridden embarrassment to our nation,” he said during his campaign.
‘Federalizing’ the district
In a Jan. 27 Las Vegas rally, the then-presidential candidate elaborated on his plans to “take over our horribly run capital” and renovate it to ensure “it’s no longer a nightmare of murder and crime.”
“We’re going to federalize it. We’re gonna have the toughest law enforcement in the country. We’re not going to have any more crime, and it’s going to look beautiful,” he said.