A northwest Washington crowd packed Nineteenth Street Baptist Church on Sunday as several mayoral candidates made a last-minute pitch before the June 16 primary. The forum, billed as "Last Chance to Dance," drilled into public safety, housing and neighborhood services, while two missing high-profile contenders left some voters frustrated and still waiting for clearer ward-level plans.
Absences Loomed Large
Several candidates, including Vincent Orange, Gary Goodweather, Rini Sampath and Ernest Johnson, fielded questions from the audience. Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George and former councilmember Kenyan McDuffie were not on stage. As reported by WUSA9, McDuffie’s campaign said he spent the afternoon canvassing in Ward 5, then met with senior voters in Ward 4. The Lewis George campaign did not return requests for comment. The no-shows sharpened the contrast over which campaigns are prioritizing door-to-door outreach over forum appearances.
Voters Called Out Local Concerns
Attendees said the empty chairs were hard to ignore. "I was disappointed," V'onica Colbert told WUSA9, as she listed neighborhood problems from rats to uncollected trash. Another voter, Jocelynn Johnson, said the forum "reinforced" her voting plans.
Onstage, Rini Sampath pointed to wide life-expectancy gaps between wards and argued that improving health outcomes should be central to any mayoral agenda.
What The Candidates Pitched
The candidates who showed up stuck to familiar themes, each trying to draw a sharper line in a crowded field. Vincent Orange pushed public safety and youth opportunities alongside housing proposals. Gary Goodweather framed his message around affordability and streamlining city processes.
Ernest Johnson emphasized community safety, affordable housing and holding developers accountable. Rini Sampath repeated a "fix the basics" approach to government performance and health equity. Voter guides and local profiles place these priorities at the center of each campaign's pitch, with background available from The Georgetowner and the League of Women Voters' VOTE411.
Why It Matters Before The Primary
The forum was one of several neighborhood events squeezed into the final weeks before the June 16 primary, the District's official ballot day and the first mayoral election in D.C. to use ranked-choice voting. The District of Columbia Board of Elections lists the primary date and early-voting window on its calendar. Organizers promoted the program through community networks, with the Thursday Network listing the event at Nineteenth Street Baptist Church in northwest D.C.
With just weeks until the primary, voters at the forum said they wanted concrete, ward-level solutions, from rats and trash pickup to life-expectancy gaps, not just broad promises. Sunday’s mix of on-stage pledges and notable absences underscored how the race could be decided as much in living rooms and on doorsteps as on debate stages.
