Local
Council candidates compete for LGBT vote
Wooing crowds at Town, Nellie’s and Ziegfeld’s as low turnout expected next week
From left, Mara, Orange and Biddle. (Blade photos by Michael Key)
At least four of the nine candidates running in the April 26 special election for an at-large D.C. City Council seat are aggressively courting LGBT voters in a race that political observers say is highly unpredictable.
With special elections known for yielding a low voter turnout, LGBT voters could be the deciding force in the election if they coalesce behind one candidate, according to activists following the race.
Many of the city’s LGBT activists are supporting Democrat Sekou Biddle, a former Ward 4 school board member who won an interim appointment to the at-large Council seat in January. Biddle has expressed strong support for LGBT rights.
But Democrat Vincent Orange, a former Ward 5 Council member, and Republican Patrick Mara, a Ward 1 school board member, have surprised some LGBT activists by recruiting prominent LGBT supporters and by waging active campaigns targeting the LGBT community.
In the Ward 8 race for a vacant seat on the city’s Board of Education, veteran gay Democratic and Ward 8 civic activist Phil Pannell is leading a field of nine candidates in money raised and spent, according to a campaign finance report he filed on April 18, the last report to be filed before the April 26 election.
Pannell has been an outspoken advocate for LGBT rights, including same-sex marriage, in a ward where the majority black population is known to be more conservative on social issues. The Ward 8 Council member, former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry, was one of just two of the city’s 13 Council members who voted against the same-sex marriage bill that the Council approved in December 2009.
“I’m running on a platform that supports the very best in public education for all of our youth, including LGBT youth,” Pannell said last month after receiving the endorsement of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political organization.
He is the only gay candidate running in the April 26 election, which was called to fill two school board seats – one in Ward 8 and another in Ward 4 – in addition to the at-large Council seat.
His campaign finance report shows he has raised $21,307 as of April 18, with $17,225 coming from a personal loan he made to his campaign. The report shows Pannell spent $10,672 on campaign-related activities as of April 18.
Pannell’s closet rival in the money department is LGBT supportive D.C. home rule advocate Eugene Dewitt Kinlow, who raised $11,133 and spent $3,000 as of April 18. Pannell had $9,471 in cash on hand for the remaining week of the campaign, his finance report shows, compared to Kinlow, who had $7,633 in cash on hand.
The at-large Council seat became vacant after Democrat Kwame Brown, who held the seat, won election last year as D.C. Council Chair. The city’s Democratic State Committee appointed Biddle to fill the seat on an interim basis in January until a “permanent” Council member was chosen in the April special election.
Since the at-large Council seat held by Brown was scheduled to come up for election in 2012, the winner of the special election on April 26 must also stand for re-election in 2012.
Orange has raised more than $261,000 in campaign funds as of April 18, the last required campaign finance reporting period before the election. Biddle’s April 18 finance report shows he has raised just over $175,000 for his campaign, putting him in second place in money raised. Mara’s report shows him in third place in the money department, with $60,559 raised.
Many of the city’s political pundits believe Orange and Biddle are the frontrunners in the race, with Orange having the advantage in funds raised as well as an endorsement by the city’s influential municipal employees union. Biddle has been endorsed by Mayor Vincent Gray, City Council Chair Kwame Brown, and several other Council members, including gay Council member David Catania (I-At-Large).
Mara received the endorsement of the Washington Post, which billed him as a needed independent voice in a city government dominated by Democrats. The Post backing is expected to give his campaign a boost in Wards 2, 3 and 6, where voter turnout is often higher than in the other wards.
Orange came out against same-sex marriage when he ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2006. Earlier this year, he announced he had changed his position on the issue and now fully supports the right of gays and lesbians to marry under the city’s same-sex marriage law. He also pointed to what he called his long record of support on other LGBT issues during his tenure as a Ward 5 Council member.
Mara emerged as an early supporter of same-sex marriage when he ran unsuccessfully for a City Council seat in 2008. He has billed himself as a “fiscally responsible and socially progressive” Republican who strongly supports LGBT equality. He notes in his campaign literature that he was the only one of the nine candidates now running for the at-large seat who testified in favor of same-sex marriage when the same-sex marriage bill came up for a hearing before the City Council in 2009.
Biddle has said he spoke out in support of the same-sex marriage law when it was pending before the Council. He notes that he was an advocate for LGBT youth related issues during his tenure as a school board member.
Ward 1 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Bryan Weaver, a Democrat, has also spoken out in support of LGBT issues at candidate forums across the city. He, too, spoke out in support of the same-sex marriage law and backed an ANC resolution endorsing the proposed law as it was pending before the Council.
Biddle’s gay supporters, including leaders of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political group that has endorsed Biddle, say they believe Biddle will capture the lion’s share of the LGBT vote. They acknowledge, though, that other candidates are challenging Biddle for the gay vote and could capture some of that vote.
Rick Rosendall, vice president of the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance, said that similar to nearly all D.C. elections since the early1980s, virtually all candidates running for public office in the District express support for LGBT equality. According to Rosendall, D.C.’s LGBT community – unlike other cities and states – has the luxury of setting a higher standard for selecting candidates based on their knowledge, understanding and sophistication on specific LGBT and AIDS-related issues.
“It’s not a matter of just saying I support you,” he said. “It’s a matter of demonstrating an understanding of the issues and showing what they will do to address them.”
GLAA, a nonpartisan organization, has rated candidates on LGBT and AIDS-related issues, along with some broader issues, since the group was founded in 1971. Based on candidate responses to a questionnaire and their record on LGBT-related issues, the group assigns them a score ranging from +10, the highest possible rating, and -10, the lowest rating.
In the at-large Council race set to be decided on April 26, GLAA gave Biddle and Weaver a +5.5, the highest rating among the nine candidates in the race.
Mara and Statehood Green Party candidate Alan Page received a +4. Orange received a +3.5 and Joshua Lopez, a Ward 1 Democrat and aide to former Mayor Adrian Fenty, received a +2.5.
Each of the candidates expressed support for all of the LGBT issues and positions raised by GLAA on the group’s questionnaire, including strong support for the city law that legalized same-sex marriage.
The remaining three candidates in the at-large race – Democrats Tom Brown and Dorothy Douglas and independent Arkan Haile – did not return the GLAA questionnaire and had no record on LGBT issues known to GLAA, prompting the group to give the three a “0” rating.
In addition to Kinlow, four other candidates running against Pannell in the Ward 8 school board race expressed general support for LGBT rights and pledged to back policies supportive of LGBT youth attending the city’s public school system during a candidate forum sponsored by the Stein Club. The five are Sandra Williams, Tijwanna Phillips, Larry Pretlow II, and Cardell Shelton.
The other three candidates in the Ward 8 race – Trayon White, R. Joyce Scott and Anthony Muhammad – did not attend the Stein Club forum and have not publicly disclosed their positions on LGBT issues.
Biddle, Mara and Orange have been the most visible of the nine candidates running for the at-large seat in the LGBT community during the past two weeks. Biddle, among other things, hosted a “meet and greet” reception for the LGBT community at the gay nightclub Town last week.
With the assistance of Pannell, who is supporting him, Orange spent Saturday night, April 16, campaigning in several D.C. gay bars, including the Southwest D.C. nightclub Ziegfeld’s, where he spoke to the crowd. Another two Orange supporters, gay Democratic activists Barrie Daneker and Lee Brian Reba, organized an LGBT fundraiser for Orange scheduled for Thursday night at Nellie’s Sports Bar, a gay venue on U Street, N.W.
The Mara campaign, meanwhile, placed full-page ads promoting his campaign and outlining his support for LGBT issues in the Washington Blade during the past two weeks.
The April 26 special election is open to all registered D.C. voters of all party affiliations as well as to independent votes.
District of Columbia
How Pepper the courthouse dog helps victims of abuse
Reshaping how the legal system balances compassion with procedure
Deborah Kelly’s blind husband, Alton, was dragged for blocks to his death by a hit-and-run driver who had already plowed into her on Alabama Ave., S.E., in June 2024.
But her trauma had only just begun. It took 10 months before the driver, Kenneth Trice, Jr., was arrested, and another six months before he was sentenced to just six months behind bars.
As she heaved and sobbed in the courtroom in November, Kelly had a steady four-legged presence by her side: Pepper the Courthouse Dog, as the black Labrador retriever is known in D.C. Superior Court.
Abby Stavitsky, a former federal prosecutor who now serves as a victims’ advocate, is the owner and handler of nine-year-old Pepper. She says that one of the things that has made Pepper such a great asset in the court in the past six years is the emotional support and comfort she provides to victims.
“She absorbs all of the feelings and the emotions around her, but she’s very good at handling it,” Stavitsky said.
Pepper and Stavitsky started working in Magistrate Judge Mary Grace Rook’s courtroom — and now works in Magistrate Judge Janet Albert’s — to provide support for youth who suffer trauma, especially young survivors of commercial sexual exploitation.
These specially trained dogs offer emotional support to trauma victims of all ages. Courthouse dogs can reduce victims’ and witnesses’ anxiety and stress, making it easier for them to provide clear statements in the courtroom, according to a 2019 report in the Criminal Justice Review.
“Having something to pet and interact with is a distraction that results in victims being calmer when testifying in court,” says Stavitsky. “This gives them an extra level of comfort.”
What brought Stavitsky and Pepper together
Stavitsky, who spent 25 years as an assistant U.S attorney, handled a lot of victim-based crimes, mostly domestic violence and sex offenses. She was also a dog lover, and once she learned about courthouse dogs and their use, she was inspired.
In 2019, Pepper was given to Stavitsky by a Massachusetts-based organization, NEADS, formerly known as the National Education for Assistance Dog Services. Although Pepper was originally trained to be a service dog, evaluators determined her character was best suited for a courthouse dog.
Pepper now works regularly in various treatment court cases involving juveniles, many of whom have experienced trauma or are involved in the child welfare system. She also sits with victims while they are testifying in a trial.
“She loves people, especially children,” Stavitsky said. “She loves that interaction.”
Courthouse dogs have a long history
In courthouses across the U.S. specially trained “facility dogs” are becoming an important part of how the justice system supports vulnerable victims and witnesses.
Since the late 1980s, these dogs were used to help trauma survivors and anxious children during testimonies and interviews. The first dog to make an appearance in a courtroom was Sheba, a German shepherd who assisted child sexual abuse victims in the Queens (N.Y.) District Attorney’s Office. Courthouse dogs help them communicate more clearly, especially in these settings that make them anxious and stressed.
Unlike service dogs, courthouse facility dogs are professionally trained through accredited assistance dog organizations and work daily alongside prosecutors, victim advocates, and forensic interviewers. For example, courthouse dogs can have more social interaction, unlike service dogs.
Courthouse dogs’ growing use has prompted state laws and professional guidelines to recognize the dogs as a trauma-informed tool that helps victims participate in the justice process without compromising courtroom fairness.
As more jurisdictions adopt these programs, courthouse dogs are reshaping how the legal system balances compassion with procedure, ensuring that victims’ voices can be heard in environments that might otherwise silence them.
Pepper makes it easy to see why.
“I really love people, especially kids, and can provide emotional support and comfort during all stages of the court process,” reads the business card Stavitsky hands out with Pepper’s picture. “I’m calm, quiet and can stay in place for several hours.”
(This article was written by a student in the journalism program at Bard High School Early College DC. This work is part of a partnership between the Washington Blade Foundation and Youthcast Media Group, funded through the FY26 Community Development Grant from the Office of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.)
Rehoboth Beach
Women’s FEST returns to Rehoboth Beach next week
Golf tournament, mini-concerts, meetups planned for silver anniversary festival
Women’s+ FEST 2026 will begin on Thursday, April 9 at CAMP Rehoboth Community Center.
The festival will celebrate a remarkable milestone in 2026: its silver anniversary. For 25 years, Women’s+ FEST has brought fun and entertainment for all those on the spectrum of the feminine spirit. There will be a variety of events including a golf tournament, mini-concerts and happy hour meetups.
For more information, visit Camp Rehoboth’s website.
District of Columbia
How new barriers to health care coverage are hitting D.C.
Federally qualified health centers bracing for influx of newly uninsured patients
Washington, D.C. has the second-lowest rate of people who lack health insurance in the country, but many residents are facing new barriers to health care due to provisions of the sweeping federal law passed in July, which threatens access for thousands.
Changes to insurance eligibility and the rising cost of premiums, which kicked in for some in October and others more recently, are expected to leave many more patients uninsured or unable to afford medical care. Federally qualified health centers, including D.C.’s Whitman-Walker Health, where 10 to 12 percent of patients are uninsured, are bracing for an influx of newly uninsured patients while facing their own financial challenges.
Even in D.C., where uninsured rates have been among the lowest in the country, changes brought on by the passage of the Republican mega bill (known as the “Big Beautiful Bill”) will have major effects.
The changes from the bill affect Medicaid, which is free to low-income patients, and subsidies for insurance that people buy on the health insurance exchanges that were started under the Affordable Care Act, which were allowed to expire on Dec. 31.
Erin Loubier, vice president for access and strategic initiatives at Whitman-Walker Health, says some Whitman-Walker Health patients have received notices about premium increases, including several who say the increases are up to 1,000 percent more than they were paying.
“That is like paying rent,” she says. “We live in an expensive city, so any increases are going to be really, really hard on people.”
Whitman-Walker Health and other healthcare providers are expecting the changes to have multiple effects — some patients may not be able to afford coverage or may avoid going to the doctor and allow health conditions to worsen because they can’t afford care, and many more will be seeking care who don’t have insurance.
“I’m worried that we’re going to not just have people who can’t get care, but that they delay care until they’re really sick, and then the care is not as effective because they might have waited too long, and then we may have a less healthy population,” Loubier says.
Loubier says delaying care, and serving more people without insurance has major implications for Whitman-Walker Health and other health centers serving the community.
“There’s going to be a lot of pressure on us to try to find and raise more money, and that’s going to be harder, because I think all organizations who provide health care are going to be facing this,” she says.
The U.S. health care system is the most expensive in the world, and has much higher out-of-pocket costs for individuals. But in other countries like the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and many others, health care is much less expensive — or even free.
Even though the U.S. has a high-priced healthcare system, critics say there are still ways to bring down costs by forcing insurance and pharmaceutical companies to absorb more of the costs, rather than transferring the costs to patients.
“In the U.S., they end up trying to cut costs at the person’s level, not at the level of the different corporations or structures that are making a lot of money in healthcare,” said Loubier. “Our system is so complicated and there is probably waste in it, but I don’t think that that cost and waste is at the ‘people’ level. I think it’s higher up at the system level, but that is much, much harder to get people to try to make cuts at that end.”
Ultimately at Whitman-Walker Health, healthcare providers and insurance navigators are planning to help with everyday necessities when it comes to healthcare coverage and striving to provide healthcare in partnership with patients, said Loubier.
“The key here is we’re going to have a lot of people who may lose insurance, and they’re going to rely on places like Whitman-Walker Health and other community health centers, so we have to figure out how we keep providing that care,” she said.
(This article was written by a student in the journalism program at Bard High School Early College DC. This work is part of a partnership between the Washington Blade Foundation and Youthcast Media Group, funded through the FY26 Community Development Grant from the Office of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.)
How Pepper the courthouse dog helps victims of abuse
Women’s FEST returns to Rehoboth Beach next week
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Calendar: April 3-9
How new barriers to health care coverage are hitting D.C.
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