D.C. Council member Robert White, the Democratic nominee for the District's nonvoting congressional delegate, is facing an eligibility problem rooted in a 1970 law. With the general election days away, he could have to give up his Council seat or find a way to change the rules. The twist arrives just as White was positioned to succeed outgoing Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton.
According to WUSA9, a 1970 law may require White to resign from the D.C. Council before Election Day to remain eligible in the congressional delegate race. The Washington Post reports that he could be ineligible to serve as the District's nonvoting representative in Congress unless he resigns from his current office, per washingtonpost.com.
An Obscure 1970 Rule Takes Center Stage
The provision at the heart of the problem is a relic. As Washington Sun describes it, the “obscure provision mandates that the D.C. House delegate cannot hold any other paid public office,” a restriction that covers a D.C. Council seat at the time of election. White won the June Democratic primary, which set him up as the presumptive successor to Norton.
The D.C. Board of Elections offers a path forward. A spokeswoman told the outlet that White is eligible to run for delegate under the current law so long as he resigns before Election Day next week. The same account lays out the alternatives: he must either resign from the Council or persuade his colleagues to consider changing the law before Tuesday.
White's Team Weighs Its Options
White's camp has not tipped its hand. The Sun reports that his team is working “through a few options” to resolve the issue, while dc.citycast.fm says the campaign is researching the issue and looking into the best next steps. Whether he resigns or pursues a change to the law has not been established.
Changing the provision is no small lift. According to the citycast.fm report, Council members would need to gather for a special meeting and pass so-called emergency legislation, which requires a supermajority. The mayor would then need to sign it by Election Day.
What White Has to Lose
White is serving his third term as an at-large member of the Council and currently chairs the housing committee, per citycast.fm. The same report notes that the Council job pays $171,547 a year. The delegate seat he is chasing comes with a different kind of power: the delegate serves in Congress and on committees but is not allowed to cast votes on final pieces of legislation.
For the legal backdrop, the Congress.gov record shows the 1970 enactment amended the District of Columbia Election Act to add “Delegate” to an eligibility-related provision. Meanwhile, the U.S. House Office of the Law Revision Counsel excerpt states that the delegate has a seat in the House, is elected to serve during each Congress and is subject to qualifications on the date of election.
The D.C. Law Library excerpt on qualifications for holding office says a person may not hold the office if the person holds another compensated public office, while identifying an exception involving employment and service as a Council member and service as a delegate or alternate. With Election Day looming, the clock is the one thing everyone agrees on.
