As Democrats fight for control of the U.S. House, D.C. Councilmember Robert White is entering a new phase of his D.C. delegate campaign, this time looking outside of the Beltway to amass support for D.C. statehood.
Through what’s dubbed Defend DC, White plans to dispatch District residents to other congressional districts to canvass on behalf of Democratic allies running in midterm races. Their victories, he noted, could potentially shift power in the U.S. House while strengthening the District’s defense against Republican interference in local affairs.
“The reality is that Republicans right now are in a posture where they are beating up on D.C. for purely political purposes, either to appease the president or to appease their base because they are not getting things done nationally,” White told The Informer. “So if we’re going to stop that, the most important thing we do is build a defense by building a Democratic majority in Congress, which is why my strategy on that is so important and vital to the future of our city.”
White officially launched Defend DC on Aug. 24 during a rally at Freedom Plaza, across the street from the John A. Wilson Building, where he currently serves as an at-large council member, and blocks away from the U.S. Capitol. With dozens of Defend DC coalition members behind him, White also announced the DC51 Leadership PAC, which, should he win in November, would work to strengthen national partnerships, defend Home Rule, and advance the fight for D.C. statehood.
These efforts come amid congressional Republicans’ introduction of more than 130 bills, amendments and riders targeting District autonomy and governance. This fall, the U.S. Senate will likely explore a bill passed by the U.S. House that mandates congressional approval for changes to the local tax code. Another House bill, introduced by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) would restore the death penalty in the District, if passed.
In the more than 60 days leading up to the Nov. 3 general election, Defend DC coalition members will make the case for their candidates during visits to certain congressional districts. While plans for New Jersey and Pennsylvania have yet to be announced, Defend DC will spend Labor Day weekend in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District, where former U.S. Rep. Tom Periello is attempting to unseat Rep. John McGuire, a Republican whose legislation to make the Trump administration’s D.C. Safe & Beautiful Task Force permanent passed the U.S. House earlier this year.
“I believe in building very strong coalitions and allies and not going it alone. We are doing it now, and I see things coming together in a really, really exciting way,” White told The Informer. “This is an incredibly important time historically. I don’t believe we have ever had a window for statehood like the one we have now, and it will take a lot of work for us to seize this moment, but I’m up for it.”
From Memphis to D.C.: Tennessee Rep. Justin J. Pearson Stands Up for D.C. Statehood
In a 2021 Roll Call op-ed, Perriello, then serving as executive director of Open Society-U.S., acknowledged the “deficit of democracy imposed on our nation’s capital.”
The Informer unsuccessfully attempted to gather comment from Perriello’s campaign to further ascertain his stance on D.C. home rule and statehood.
In the South, White has at least one ally in Tennessee Rep. Justin J. Pearson, a Democratic candidate for Tennessee’s 9th congressional district seat in the U.S. House.
“We should all be concerned about what’s happening to D.C. because that is becoming the place where Trump’s authoritarian desires are being more actualized in the day-to-day,” Pearson told The Informer. “D.C. is both a guiding light for people who are trying to reclaim their authority and power from a system that’s been designed against them, but it is also shining a light on the worst impulses that we are seeing from this government against American citizens.”
As Pearson recounted, he attempted to connect with White earlier in the summer with the help of Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Howard Garrett. Though that meeting never materialized, Pearson continued to espouse his support for D.C. home rule, most recently in an Instagram post demanding that the National Guard leave the District and Memphis, and instead help residents of Gary, Indiana, currently living without electricity.
For Pearson, D.C. residents deserve a level of representation and legislative autonomy that’s on par with their contribution to the federal budget.
“Our nation was founded, and it’s on you all’s license tags, on this concept of ‘no taxation without representation,’” Pearson told The Informer, “but because those people are Black or of color, folks don’t feel like the community deserves representation. It’s the same thing I feel about Puerto Rico. It just isn’t fair.”
On Aug.6, Pearson defeated London Lamar, M. LaTroy Alexandria-Williams, and Jim Torino in the Democratic primary for Tennessee’s 9th congressional district. Pearson’s platform centers on increasing the minimum wage to $25 per hour, passing Medicare-for-All legislation, stopping the proliferation of data centers in urban and rural communities, and, above all, attacking what he calls a system designed against the working class.
As Garrett, campaign consultant Rachael Payton, and others gel plans together for a Pearson campaign phone bank party in D.C. on Sept. 2, Pearson stands opposed to those who he said are sacrificing the needs of the working class people of color to stroke President Donald J. Trump’s ego.
“The capitulation of the entire political party to be subservient to the president of the United States is horrible for our Republicans,” Pearson said. “Right now, we have a unitary executive because the people in power are yielding their authority over to the president and allowing him to do whatever he wants, which is ultimately destroying the lives and the communities of already marginalized groups, particularly Black and brown folks in poor communities. I don’t think that’s sustainable, and I believe we deserve better than that.”
Aliyah McNeely, at-large committeewoman for the D.C. Democratic Party said she’s participating in the Pearson phone bank party out of regard for national unity.
“It brings people together around shared values and a common purpose, even when they live in different cities or localities,” said McNeely, a phone bank party co-host. “As D.C.residents, we know that our fight for statehood and full representation is connected to the broader political landscape.”
Pearson, McNeely said, could be a critical partner in advancing D.C. statehood and stemming Republican intrusion.
“Supporting candidates like Rep. Justin J. Pearson, who has been vocal about D.C. statehood, helps us build relationships and coalitions beyond the District,” said McNeely, a longtime Pearson supporter.
In recent days, McNeely has taken to social media to galvanize support for Sept. 2, an effort that will involve other D.C.-based organizers, all of whom McNeely said understand the importance of securing political reinforcement miles away from their locality.
“As a D.C. resident, I know that our politics are never just local, they are national,” McNeely said. “What happens in elections across the country can directly impact us here at home, which is why we have to stay engaged and pay attention beyond the boundaries of the District.
A Moment with Defend DC and Its Affiliates
White’s rally came more than a month after he spoke at the DC Democrats’ unity brunch about what he called Trump’s assembly of military forces to extend his stay in the Oval Office.
White has since, as recounted to The Informer, spoken before the National Conference of State Legislatures and maintained contact with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md. 5), Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-Va. 11) and Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.).
“What we see in D.C. is a president who tried to overthrow a democratic election the last time he was supposed to leave office,” White told The Informer. “But last time he did it, he brought up a ragtag bunch of people from around the nation. This time, he will have more than 5,000 armed troops in the District of Columbia.”
On Aug.24, those standing next to White during the launch event for Defend DC represented: Free DC; DC Democrats; DC Statehood PAC; DC Vote Action; the D.C. chapter of the NAACP; National Action Network Greater DC Chapter; DC for Democracy; Capital Stonewall Democrats; DC Latino Caucus, and DC Young Democrats.
Greg Jackson, speaking on behalf of Free DC, decried McGuire’s efforts to make the D.C. Safe & Beautiful Task Force a permanent fixture. In making his point, he evoked the name of Julian Bailey, a Black man shot and killed by a U.S. marshal in February. He also spoke about the 16,000 arrests that have taken place over the last year.
“These actions are not about safety. This is about intimidating our community,” said Jackson, Free DC’s midterm action director. “We have to invest in [the] public, invest in violence prevention, invest in stronger schools, invest in employment, invest in services, hold police accountable, invest in jobs and housing, not just militarize our streets and make our city a stage of political theater.”
That afternoon, White also had supporters in: D.C. Shadow Senators Ankit Jain and Paul Strauss; D.C. Shadow Representative Dr. Oye Owolewa; D.C. State Board of Education Reps. Brandon Best (Ward 6) and Eboni-Rose Thompson (Ward 7); D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson; and D.C. Council members Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2); Wendell Felder (D-Ward 7), and Elissa Silverman (I-At large).
Mendelson called Defend DC a matter of setting the record straight with voters in other congressional districts.
“Most of the citizens of the United States of America…misunderstand what the situation is with the District of Columbia,” Mendelson said. “They think that we’re fully funded by federal money. We are not…The District’s budget is like 1% federal discretionary spending…They think of us as being just a federal enclave instead of 700,000 residents who are fighting to have the same rights that they have.”
Even with the rights reserved to the states, Carmel Henry says that those living in other U.S. cities aren’t immune to what she described as the Trump administration’s overreach. With the D.C. branch of the NAACP gearing up for “March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote,” Henry sought to make that message clear.
“When the federal government is permitted to disregard the will of the people, we all should be concerned with this dangerous, dangerous form of government,” said Henry, president of the NAACP’s D.C. branch. “Today, the power is exercised in the District. Tomorrow, it may be your community. We must act to ensure that members of Congress are held accountable.”
As the DC Democrats also identify key races essential to the mission of Defend DC, DC Democrats Chair Charles Wilson gave a warning to congressional Republicans who’ve actively meddled in the District’s affairs.
“We will mobilize our voters, our volunteers to make calls, to knock on doors, to raise resources and help elect Democrats who will stand with D.C. and defend our democracy,” Wilson said on Aug. 24. “Our message is very simple. If you attack D.C.’s democracy, we will organize. If you threaten D.C.’s home rule, we will mobilize. And if you refuse to stand up for D.C., we will help elect people who will.”
