District of Columbia
Your queer D.C. voting guide
June 16 primary nears; Lewis George, McDuffie lead in polling for mayor
LGBTQ voters in the nation’s capital are choosing among a long list of LGBTQ supportive candidates running for mayor, D.C. City Council, and the position of D.C. Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives in the city’s June 16 primary election.
LGBTQ activists who have spoken to the Washington Blade appear to be divided in their support for the two leading Democratic candidates for mayor – D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4) and former D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large) in a seven-candidate race.
Among the other five Democratic mayoral candidates is Rini Sampath, a cyber security consultant who told the Blade she identifies as queer.
“We’re living in an extremely diverse community, an extremely unique community,” she told the Blade. “And being able to self-label, self-identify as queer is something that I just want to take pride in.”
But a poll conducted by the Washington Post and George Mason University’s School of Policy and Government released on June 5 shows Sampath receiving just 3 percent in a sample of likely voters in the D.C. Democratic primary.
The poll, conducted from May 27-June 1, shows Lewis George leading in the mayoral primary with 36 percent compared to McDuffie, who had 25 percent. However, 25 percent of those polled were undecided in the mayoral race, according to the Post, indicating at least some of the undecided voters could go to McDuffie.
“Undecided voters are concentrated among groups that lean toward McDuffie, including moderates, Black voters and those ages 65 and older,” the Post story reporting on the poll states.
Another factor making it more difficult to predict the election outcome is the start in this year’s D.C. primary of ranked choice voting, which enables voters to select as many as five candidates on their ballot as their first through fifth choice depending on how many candidates are running for a specific office, including the office of mayor.
The ranked choice process takes effect if no candidate receives at least 50 percent of the vote in a race with three or more candidates and serves as an instant run-off using voters’ second-choice or third or more choice votes until one candidate receives 50 percent of the vote.
In what appears to support the belief of many local political observers that Lewis George and McDuffie are the two leading mayoral candidates, the poll shows the remaining candidates receiving less than 5 percent.
They include former D.C. Council member Vincent Orange with 4 percent, local real estate manager and developer Gary Goodweather with 3 percent, and former U.S. Department of Homeland Security contractor Hope Solomon and real estate broker and Ward 1 community activist Ernest Johnson each receiving 1 percent.
Goodweather, a political newcomer, has attended LGBTQ events in his mayoral campaign and has expressed strong support on LGBTQ issues.
With that as a backdrop, the Capital Stonewall Democrats, the city’s largest LGBTQ political group, has endorsed Lewis George for mayor and GLAA DC, formerly known as the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, awarded Lewis George its highest candidate rating score of +10.
GLAA said it did not issue a rating for McDuffie because his campaign did not return a GLAA candidate questionnaire on which it bases its ratings. A spokesperson for the McDuffie campaign said campaign workers later discovered the questionnaire landed in the spam folder of their email account and McDuffie would have returned it had he received it.
At GLAA’s invitation, McDuffie completed the questionnaire and GLAA has posted it with its full responses to a list of 10 questions on the GLAA website along with the questionnaire responses from other candidates, including Lewis George. Like Lewis George, McDuffie expressed strong support for a wide range of LGBTQ issues in his responses, but GLAA said it could not issue a rating for him due to the missed deadline for submitting the questionnaire.
According to GLAA, just two other mayoral candidates returned the questionnaire and received a rating. Sampath received a +6.5 rating, and Johnson received a rating of +4.5. Under the GLAA rating system, a -10 is the lowest possible rating, with a +10 being the highest.
D.C. Board of Elections records show that no Republican candidate is running for mayor and one Statehood Green Party candidate – Robert L. Gross – is running unopposed on the primary ballot for voters registered as Statehood Green Party members. GLAA’s website shows Gross did not receive a rating under the group’s policy of not rating candidates that do not return the questionnaire.
The Statehood Green Party and its candidates for local D.C. offices have historically been supportive of LGBTQ rights.
LGBTQ activists who are backing Lewis George or McDuffie appear to be gravitating to the two based on their political leadings separate from LGBTQ issues, just like voters in general. Lewis George, who identifies as a Democratic Socialist, is popular among progressive voters.
McDuffie, who is seen as a more moderate candidate like current D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, is being supported by LGBTQ activists who hold those views, some of whom currently work in the Bowser administration.
Among Lewis George’s LGBTQ supporters are longtime Ward 8 community leader Phillip Pannell and former Capital Stonewall Democrats President Howard Garrett. Among the LGBTQ McDuffie backers are longtime D.C. Democratic activists John Fanning and David Meadows.
“The rights of LGBTQ residents in our country are under attack,” Pannell told the Blade. “We need a mayor of our nation’s capital who will be a progressive voice and force in standing up for our rights and advancing the quality of life for our community,” he said. “That is one of the reasons I enthusiastically support Janeese Lewis George for mayor.”
Fanning, a member of the staff of D.C. Council member Anita Bonds (D-At-Large), said he has observed McDuffie’s work on the Council firsthand. “He has been out and upfront on many of our issues and he has been an ally to our community,” Fanning said. “And I feel more comfortable with his judgements when it comes to city policy,” Fanning said, adding, “And I sense he has more of a pulse on how to grow our economy.”
In the race for D.C. Delegate to the U.S. House, five Democrats are competing in the June 16 primary, including D.C. Council members Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) and Robert White (D-At-Large). Pinto and White have been outspoken supporters of the LGBTQ community. Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed White.
Also running as Democrats for the congressional seat are community activists Kinney Zalesne, Trent Holbrook, and Greg Jaczko, who have expressed support for LGBTQ issues at candidate forums. Denise Rosado is running unopposed for the congressional seat as a Republican, and Kymone Freeman is running unopposed as a Statehood Green Party candidate in the primary.
Under D.C.’s “closed” primary system voters can only vote for a candidate for a specific political party if they are registered members of that party in the primary. In the general election in November, voters can vote for any candidate regardless of party affiliation.
GLAA has said it does not issue candidate ratings for the D.C. Delegate position, which has been held for many years by Democratic incumbent Eleanor Holmes Norton, who announced earlier this year that she is retiring and not running for re-election. Norton has been a longtime outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter.
D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), also a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter, is running unopposed for re-election in the Democratic primary, He received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +6.5 rating from GLAA.
Nine Democrats are running for the At-Large D.C. Council seat currently held by Bonds, who is also retiring and not running for re-election. Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed local pharmacist, community activist, and LGBTQ ally Oye Owolewa, who received a +9 rating from GLAA.
The other Democrats running for the at-large seat who received a rating from GLAA include Lisa Raymond, +7.5; Dwight Davis, +6.5; Dyana Forester, +6; and Fred Hill, +5.5.
Board of Elections ballot records show that Darrell Green is running unopposed for the at-large seat in the Republican Primary and Darryl Moch is running unopposed in the primary as a Statehood Green Party candidate.
In the Ward 1 D.C. Council race, five LGBTQ supportive candidates are competing in the Democratic primary, including two LGBTQ candidates – gay rights activist Miguel Trindade Deramo and bi candidate Aparna Raj. The Ward 1 seat became vacant when incumbent Democrat Brianne Nadeau announced she was not running for re-election.
Capital Stonewall Democrats announced it did not make an endorsement in the Ward 1 race because the endorsement vote by its members was divided and none of the candidates received a required 60 percent of the vote for an endorsement.
GLAA awarded its highest +10 rating to both Deramo and Raj as well as to Ward 1 Democratic candidate Rashida Brown. It assigned a rating of +5.5 to candidate Terry Lynch but did not issue a rating for the fifth Democratic candidate – Jackie Reyes Yanes, who did not return the GLAA questionnaire.
The group didn’t issue ratings for Ward 1 Republican candidate Jett James Jasper or Statehood Green Party candidate Jude Cranniitch, both of whom are running unopposed. GLAA has said it sent out its questionnaire to all candidates listed by the Board of Elections to be placed on the ballot and does not rate those who do not return the questionnaire.
In the Ward 3 D.C. Council race, incumbent Council member Matthew Fruman (D), also an outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter, is running unopposed in the Democratic primary, with no GOP or Statehood Green Party candidate running in the primary. Fruman received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement but was not rated by GLAA.
In the Ward 5 Council race, incumbent Zachary Parker, the Council’s only gay member, is being challenged by two Democrats in the primary – community activists Bernita Carmichael and Bridget French. Parker received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +7 rating from GLAA. Carmichael and French did not receive a GLAA rating.
Political observers in the ward believe Parker is the favorite to win the primary as well as the general election in November, when he will be challenged by Republican Jeffrey Kihien-Palza and Statehood Green Party candidate Joyce Robinson-Paul, who are running unopposed in their party primaries on June 16.
In Ward 6, incumbent Council member Charles Allen (D). a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter, received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +6.75 rating from GLAA. He is being challenged in the primary by Democrats Gloria Ann Nauden and Michael Murphy. Ward 6 political observers consider Allen the strong favorite to win the primary and the general election, when he will be challenged by Republican Jorge Rice, who is running unopposed in the GOP primary. No Statehood Green Party candidate is running for the Ward 6 Council seat.
Capital Stonewall Democrats did not make an endorsement for the D.C. Council special election for the At-Large Council seat that became vacant when then-independent Council member McDuffie resigned to enable him to run for mayor as a Democrat. Under the city’s Home Rule Charter adopted by Congress, that At-Large seat is restricted to a “non-majority party” candidate, meaning a non-Democrat.
The three candidates running for the seat, all independents, include incumbent Doni Crawford, who was temporarily appointed to the seat earlier this year; former D.C. Council member Elisa Silverman; and Jacque Patterson, president of the D.C. Board of Education. All three have expressed support for LGBTQ issues. GLAA issued a +6.5 rating for Crawford and a +5.75 rating for Silverman.
In the race for D.C. Attorney General, Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed incumbent Brian Schwalb, who is an outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter. He is being challenged in the Democratic primary by D.C. attorney and law firm partner J.P. Szymkowicz, who is a Ward 3 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner.
Attorney and local law firm partner Manuel Rivera is running unopposed for the Attorney General office in the Republican primary. No Statehood Green Party candidate is running for the AG post. GLAA issued a rating of +4.5 for Rivera but did not issue ratings for Schwalb or Szymkowicz.
Finally, in the race for the so-called “shadow” D.C. U.S. Senator and D.C. U.S. Representative—offices with no voting or official authority in Congress that were created to lobby Congress on behalf of D.C. issues—Capital Stonewall Democrats did not make an endorsement. In the Democratic primary Paul Strauss is running unopposed for the shadow U.S. Senate seat and Franklin Garcia is running unopposed for the shadow U.S. House seat. Both have been LGBTQ rights supporters.
No Republican or Statehood Green Party candidates are running for either of the two “shadow” positions. GLAA does not issue ratings for the two positions.
Following are short excerpts from the detailed statements four of the seven Democratic mayoral candidates submitted to the Capital Stonewall Democrats or the Washington Blade.
Kenyan McDuffie: “As mayor, every piece of legislation I sign, craft, or endorse should also encompass the interest and input of the LGBTQ community members and advocates…From housing to health care and everything in between… We have a dire crisis regarding the rise in homelessness especially among the youth in our LGBTQ communities. In my administration that simply cannot be the status quo and will not be…I have been a consistent champion for our LGBTQ community and will remain so as mayor of D.C.”
Janeese Lewis George: “As mayor, I will protect our LGBTQ+ neighbors against federal attacks on their identity, including their health care…On the Council I have been a strong supporter of pro-LGBTQ+ bills, including making D.C. a sanctuary for people seeking gender-affirming health care as well as addressing discrimination and harassment in nightlife and hospitality…And as mayor, I am prepared to move up and win those fights – a fight for D.C. statehood, a fight for our true economy, and a real opportunity to uplift our Black queer and trans youth.”
Gary Goodweather: “A Goodweather administration will defend every D.C. law protecting LGBTQ residents. I will establish a Defend DC office to coordinate the District’s legal and public response to federal overreach, with LGBTQ+ protections explicitly within its mandate…My affordable D.C. plan will produce 50,000 new homes with 36,000 affordable units, and I will ensure LGBTQ+ youth housing programs are funded as a budget priority.”
Rini Sampath: “I am an immigrant, proud queer woman, and a 10-year resident of Washington, D.C…For me, LGBTQ+ voters including transgender and nonbinary residents, are not a separate or symbolic constituency; they are a core part of a broader, multiracial, cross-ward coalition rooted in equity and opportunity.”
Vincent Orange: “I have a long and consistent record of supporting LGBTQ+ equality and inclusion in the District of Columbia, grounded in both policy and personal commitment. As the District’s Democratic Committeeman from 2006 to 2015, I publicly supported marriage equality and voted accordingly … During my time on the D.C. Council, I worked to advance protections for LGBTQ+ residents, including authoring and passing legislation to prohibit discrimination against transgender individuals in the workplace.”
15 LGBTQ candidates running for Democratic State Committee
At least 15 known LGBTQ candidates are running for seats on the D.C. Democratic State Committee in the city’s June 16 Democratic primary.
Under local Democratic Party rules, the State Committee includes a total of 38 members, half of whom must be women and half of whom consist of men. The highest two positions include National Committeeman and National Committeewoman. Other positions include seven At-Large Committee men and seven At-Large Committee women, and two Committee men and two Committee women for reach of the city’s eight wards.
Democratic primary voters can vote for as many as seven At-Large male and At-Large female candidates and for two male and two female candidates in each of the ward committee races.
The known LGBTQ Democratic State Committee candidates are as follows:
National Committeeman
Phillip Pannell, Free DC Slate
David Meadows, Democrats United to Free DC slate
At-Large Committeeman
Jordan Kagelmayer, Free DC slate
Malake Glee, Free DC slate
At-Large Committeewoman
Lia Lake Kuduk, Free DC slate
Sonya Joseph, Free DC slate
Ward 1 Committeewoman
Vita Rangel, Free DC slate
Ward 2 Committeeman
Steven M. McCarty, Free DC slate
John Fanning, Democrats United to Free DC
Ward 3 Committeeman
Kurt Vorndran, Democrats United to Free DC slate
Michaell Haresign, Democrats United to Free DC slate
Ward 4 Committeewoman
Corey Welcher
Ward 7 Committeeman
Jimie Williams, Democrats to Free DC slate
Ward 8 Committeeman
Alejaibra Sloan, Free DC slate
District of Columbia
Longtime Blade staffer Stephen Rutgers steps down after 14 years
Plans to focus on running Crush Dance Bar, other ventures
Longtime Washington Blade employee Stephen Rutgers announced he is stepping down after 14 years to focus on other ventures, including his part ownership of the popular Crush Dance Bar.
Rutgers was hired by the Blade in 2012 to help plan Pride festivities and over the years was promoted to director of sales and marketing. In addition to his broad set of responsibilities, Rutgers planned the annual Pride on the Pier celebration at the Wharf, which has exploded in popularity over the seven years since its launch.
“Watching Pride on the Pier grow from a new community event into one of D.C.’s signature Pride celebrations has been incredibly rewarding,” Rutgers said. “Expanding Pride on the Pier into a two-day festival for WorldPride in 2025 was definitely a career highlight. Seeing thousands of people come together to celebrate our community while supporting the Blade’s mission is something I’ll always be proud of.”
Rutgers described his biggest challenge as navigating the changing media landscape.
“More than ever, we’ve had to remind our community that local journalism matters and that it needs their support,” he said.
He added that he’s most proud of helping to ensure the Washington Blade is positioned to thrive for the next 50 years.
“I was fortunate to be part of the Blade during its 50th anniversary — a milestone that reflects its incredible history and impact,” Rutgers said. “The Blade has been an important voice for the LGBTQ community for more than five decades, and knowing I played a small part in helping its future is most important to me.”
Blade Publisher Brian Pitts praised Rutgers for juggling multiple responsibilities.
“We wish Stephen all the best,” Pitts said. “For the past 14 years, Stephen has been a vital part of the Blade, handling many things — marketing and advertising, sponsorships, and Blade signature events. We will all miss him.”
Blade Editor Kevin Naff thanked Rutgers for his years of service to the community.
“After 14 years, it’s hard to imagine the Blade without Stephen and his boundless energy and creativity,” Naff said. “He’s one of the hardest working and most dedicated people I’ve ever known and he will be missed. But change is the only constant and I know Stephen will move on successfully to new challenges and the Blade will expand on Stephen’s important work.”
As for what’s next for Rutgers, he said he plans to focus on Crush as well as his real estate business.
“I’ve always been someone who likes to stay busy,” Rutgers said. “For the past 12 years, I’ve balanced my work at the Blade and in real estate. Two years ago when I opened Crush, I never realized just how much time and energy it would take. The passing of my father earlier this year also gave me a new perspective. It reminded me that life is short and that it’s important to make time for the people and experiences that matter most. Stepping away from the Blade will allow me to focus on those ventures while also creating more balance in my life. After 14 incredible years, it feels like the right time for a new chapter.”
Naff said that for now Rutgers’s responsibilities will be divided between existing staff along with several new freelance contractors.
“The Washington Blade plays a unique role in our community’s fight for equality,” Rutgers said. “It’s the only LGBTQ news organization with White House credentials, giving it direct access to the people and institutions shaping policies that affect our community. The Blade continues to hold elected officials accountable, report on the issues that matter most to LGBTQ people, and tell the stories that often go uncovered by mainstream media.
“The Blade has been my family for most of my adult life. For 14 years, it has been part of my daily routine, so it’s going to feel very strange waking up and not logging on each morning.”
District of Columbia
Nearly 6,000 turn out for Pride Night Out at the Nationals
Gay Men’s Chorus sings National Anthem
“Just shy of” 6,000 people purchased tickets for the Wednesday, June 24, 21st annual Pride Night Out at the Washington Nationals baseball stadium, which the Nationals said is the longest running LGBTQ Pride event in Major League Baseball, according to a Nationals spokesperson.
The event was organized with the Nationals by Team D.C., the local LGBTQ sports group that organizes similar Pride Nights for other professional D.C. area sports teams.
“It was a good time had by all as the Nationals celebrated the LGBTQ+ community during the Nationals 21st Pride Night Out, presented by Team D.C.” the Nationals said in a statement.
Nationals spokesperson Erica George said the overall game attendance was 27,200.
Similar to recent past years, the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington sung the National Anthem at the start of the game, drawing loud cheers from people throughout the stadium.
The Nationals lost the game to the Philadelphia Phillies by a score of 5-4. Although most of the LGBTQ attendees of the event, held in the right-field mezzanine section of the stadium, were cheering for the Nationals, a sizeable number also cheered for the Phillies.
Miguel Ayala, one of Team D.C.’s lead organizers, said he noticed fans displaying Pride flags and recognized LGBTQ people in all parts of the stadium, indicating significantly more LGBTQ people and their supporters attended the game beyond the close to 6,000 or more who purchased the specific Pride Night Out tickets.
“It was a great excitement last night,” he told the Washington Blade on the day following the event. “I saw a lot of big crowds of our people, I saw everybody I can think of in the community. And it was really great to see the turnout.”
Also, like in previous years, Team D.C. along with the Nationals helped to organize a pre-game show on the large concourse platform area next to the stadium seating area involving a drag show led by local drag performer Shi-Queeta Lee.
“During pregame ceremonies, the Nationals Pride employee resource group was recognized on the field,” the statement released by the Nationals says. “Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, a physician and public health leader who has had a profound impact on the LGBTQ+ community and those living with or vulnerable to HIV, threw out the ceremonial first pitch as the guest of Team D.C.,” the statement says.
It adds that Team D.C.’s scholarship recipient Spencer Doll made the ceremonial call to “Play Ball.”
As if all that were not enough, a Nationals employee who entertains during the Nationals pre-game shows on the field dressed as a giant eagle named “Screech” wearing an eagle’s head mask appeared in the seating area where the Pride Night Out crowd was seated and mingled with the LGBTQ fans, many of whom posed for photos with Screech.
District of Columbia
Washington Blade names new publisher
Longtime ad exec Brian Pitts to assume role from Lynne Brown
The Washington Blade announced this week that its longtime publisher, Lynne Brown, who has worked at the publication for nearly 40 years, is retiring from her day-to-day duties.
Blade co-owner and longtime advertising executive Brian Pitts will assume the role of publisher effective June 26.
Pitts, 46, is a native of Fredericksburg, Va. In 2004, he moved to Washington, D.C., from Rehoboth Beach, Del., to work at the Blade as a 24-year-old sales executive. Pitts, along with Brown and Blade Editor Kevin Naff have owned the Blade since 2009. Pitts has served as the Blade’s lead sales executive since then.
“We’ve been through a lot over the last 17 years, including a recession and a pandemic,” said Pitts. “Lynne has been a steady hand throughout and I’m excited to take the reins and help steer the Blade into its next chapter.”
Brown will assume the title of publisher emerita and remain a part owner of the Washington Blade and Los Angeles Blade and contribute to the business via special projects.
As for what’s next, she said, “I will take the summer to regroup. I have one more LGBTQ community project in mind, and a few personal goals to check off the list. I am a Washingtonian. I will continue to live, work, and love here in D.C. Of course every Friday morning, I will grab a cup of coffee and read the Blade.”
Asked what advice she has for Pitts as he takes over the publisher’s job, Brown replied, “Brian is going to be great. He has all the skills needed to run this business. He also has a deep, silent passion for the Blade. My only advice: Slow and steady wins the race.”
Pitts said his primary goal as publisher is to ensure the Blade continues its mission as America’s LGBTQ news source.
“Another goal is to reach a younger audience and to include an educational component,” he added. “Some younger community members may be newer to the Blade and less familiar with LGBTQ history. Recently, we published a special commemorative magazine to coincide with America 250, chronicling LGBTQ history and contributions to U.S. culture. It’s so important not to let our history get erased and to remember where we came from and to work toward where we want to go.”
He described the biggest challenge to queer media as the Trump administration’s attacks on DEI.
“We have companies that have advertised with us for years who are now afraid of the potential consequences,” he said.
Brown joined the Blade in 1987. She was named publisher in 2007 by previous owner Window Media. In 2009, Window Media filed for bankruptcy; shortly after, Brown, Naff, and Pitts acquired the Blade’s assets from the bankruptcy court and relaunched the brand with Brown as publisher.
She said the period after the bankruptcy became her biggest challenge as publisher.
“The crisis that birthed Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia kept me overly focused on millions of details,” she recalls. “My greatest personal challenge was delegating and letting go of details. Trusting staff with their strengths and skills to do their jobs was slow to come. It has proved to be most rewarding. Building the right team — knowing the people you work with are committed, professional, and honest — is a great thing.”
Pitts described the bankruptcy and rebirth of the Blade in 2009 as his proudest moment with the company.
“Working at the paper has been great, but becoming a co-owner was a dream come true,” he said.
Naff praised both of his colleagues.
“Lynne has been a rock, helping us navigate financial crises and a pandemic. The Blade wouldn’t have survived without her dedication,” he said. “She is the publisher every editor would want. Brian has terrific instincts, a passion for the Blade’s important mission, and an eye on growth. I am proud to call both of them friends and mentors and look forward to the next chapter.”
Asked why LGBTQ media are still relevant, Brown cited the recent erosion of queer rights as evidence that the Blade’s work remains important.
“The Blade helps fight invisibility and isolation,” she said. “We may have rights today, but we have seen rights eroded or erased. The Blade reports on those rights authentically and accurately and serves as a communication tool and a historian for the community.”
Pitts added, “While mainstream media may cover LGBTQ+ issues, no one covers them quite like us. These are our community’s stories and voices and this is your news source.”
The Blade will host a happy hour event later this summer where the community can meet Pitts and thank Brown for her decades of service.
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