Issue
Statehood & Federal Pressure
DC residents pay federal taxes and have no vote in Congress. In 2025–2026, that gap got wider.
Quick takeWhat you need to know
What you need to know
- First-ever invocation of Home Rule Act §740: MPD was federalized for 30 days in August 2025.
- Congress overrode a DC tax law (PL 119-78) on Feb 18, 2026 — the first such override in 50+ years of Home Rule.
- The Delegate seat is open for the first time in 35 years after Norton ended her reelection bid.
Under the 1973 Home Rule Act, DC elects its own Mayor and Council, but Congress reviews every DC law and can nullify it with a joint disapproval resolution. In August 2025, President Trump invoked Section 740 of that Act for the first time in its history, federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department for 30 days and deploying the DC National Guard alongside out-of-state troops. In February 2026, Congress and the President overrode a DC tax law for the first time on record. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District's non-voting representative since 1991, ended her reelection campaign in January 2026 — leaving the seat open for the first time in 35 years. DC still has zero voting members in the U.S. House or Senate.
What's at stake
Local laws can be overridden
Congress reviewed and overrode DC's tax conformity bill in February 2026 — only the fifth disapproval since Home Rule, and the first ever for a tax law.
Local police can be federalized
§740 was used for the first time in August 2025. The DC Circuit signaled in December 2025 that the President holds 'unique power' over the District, suggesting weak judicial guardrails on future invocations.
DC's Delegate seat is open
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) ended her 2026 reelection bid on Jan 26, 2026 after 18 terms. The non-voting House Delegate is DC's loudest microphone for statehood and Home Rule defense.
PowerWho decides
Who decides
- U.S. CongressReviews every DC law (30 legislative days for civil, 60 for criminal). Sets the District's federal payment and approves its budget.
- President of the United StatesSigns or vetoes disapproval resolutions; can invoke §740 to federalize MPD; issues executive orders affecting federal land and law enforcement in DC.
- DC Council & MayorPass laws and the local budget — subject to congressional review and, since Feb 2026, override.
- DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb (D)Sues the federal government on the District's behalf; filed and joined challenges to the 2025 Guard deployment and federal funding freezes.
Who decides
- U.S. CongressReviews every DC law (30 legislative days for civil, 60 for criminal). Sets the District's federal payment and approves its budget.
- President of the United StatesSigns or vetoes disapproval resolutions; can invoke §740 to federalize MPD; issues executive orders affecting federal land and law enforcement in DC.
- DC Council & MayorPass laws and the local budget — subject to congressional review and, since Feb 2026, override.
- DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb (D)Sues the federal government on the District's behalf; filed and joined challenges to the 2025 Guard deployment and federal funding freezes.
Recent moves
- Robert White wins Delegate primary; pledges confrontational stance on statehood and federal autonomyWJLA ↗
- House Oversight advances H.R. 8801, DC ROADS Act, to bar DC from any congestion toll on driversGovinfo — H.R. 8801 ↗
- House committee reports H.R. 5183, DC Home Rule Improvement Act of 2025Congress.gov ↗
- Trump signs PL 119-78 — first congressional override of a DC tax lawCongress.gov ↗
- Senate votes 49–47 to overturn DC tax decoupling (~$650M / 5 yrs)DC Council ↗
- Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton ends 2026 reelection bid after 18 termsNPR ↗
- DC Circuit lets Trump's National Guard deployment in DC continueNPR ↗
- U.S. District Court rules DC Guard deployment illegal (later stayed)DC AG Schwalb ↗
- MPD federalization lapses at the 30-day statutory limitCNN ↗
- Trump invokes Home Rule §740 for the first time in history; federalizes MPDWashington Post ↗
- House votes 266–148 to repeal DC noncitizen voting law (Senate did not act)Roll Call ↗
- EO 14252 establishes federal 'DC Safe and Beautiful Task Force'EO 14252 (UCSB) ↗
AskQuestions to put to candidates
Questions to put to candidates
- How would you respond if Congress overrides another DC law in 2026 or 2027?
- Do you support DC v. federal litigation, and on what grounds — taxation, autonomy, civil rights?
- What is your statehood strategy beyond reintroducing HR 51?
Questions to put to candidates
- How would you respond if Congress overrides another DC law in 2026 or 2027?
- Do you support DC v. federal litigation, and on what grounds — taxation, autonomy, civil rights?
- What is your statehood strategy beyond reintroducing HR 51?