In an unprecedented decision, the DC Council unanimously voted to expel Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White, who faced serious federal bribery charges for allegedly accepting thousands of dollars in kickbacks. This expulsion is a historic first for the Council and comes in the wake of White being accused of taking cash payments in exchange for facilitating the renewal of city contracts with organizations, an investigation by an ad hoc committee revealed code of conduct violations yet was unable to prove residency rule violations, according to WUSA9.
White, who pleaded not guilty to the charges and won reelection in November despite the ongoing investigation, apologized during his swearing-in, saying "This morning, I want to say that I apologize to my city, and I love my city to the core of who I am. I am not a perfect man, but if you get to know me, you know that I am a good man," but refrained from detailing the reasons for his apology, WUSA9 reports.
While some draw comparisons between White's defiant stance and that of former Mayor Marion Barry, his mentor, others like George Musgrove, author and history professor, suggest such parallels are a "false comparison," giving due recognition to Barry's extensive civil rights activism prior to his political career, as detailed by NBC Washington.
The expulsion vote comes after a substantial evidence found that White accepted $35,000 in cash from an FBI confidential human source and engaged in activities that are deemed to violate the DC Council Code of Conduct, as outlined in the committee's findings, per WUSA9. Council Chair Phil Mendelson previously stated, “It comes down to whether a legislature has the ability to expel a member for egregious conduct and we've seen over and over in Congress and the state legislature where that happens,” as reported by 7News.
The vote to expel White required a supermajority, amounting to 10 out of 13 members and the expulsion is effective immediately, creating a vacancy in the representation of Ward 8 and setting the stage for a special election to fill the seat, though White, who remains unconvicted, retains his eligibility to run in this special election, and it is not yet determined if he would face another expulsion should he be re-elected.
