Since 1801, residents of the District of Columbia have been denied the federal voting rights and full self-governance enjoyed by residents of the 50 states. The District’s 600,000 residents do not have full voting representation in either the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate and lack an autonomous local government.
While District residents pay more than $3.8 billion in federal income taxes annually, they have no input on how their tax dollars are spent. Without representation in Congress, they also lack a voice on important national issues such as declarations of war, treaties, health care or Presidential nominations.
Congress maintains oversight of the democratically-elected DC government. Congress, with representatives from the 50 states, can change or veto any budget or legislative measure passed by DC’s locally-elected officials, regardless of the preference of DC residents.
The District of Columbia is home to over 40,000 veterans, more per capita than any other city in the country. Sons and daughters of the District have fought and died in every international conflict since the War for Independence. During the Vietnam War, DC had more casualties than 10 states, and more losses per capita than 47 states. DC is home to more veterans proportionally than California, New Jersey or New York; and proudly honors its 39 Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.
The ultimate goal for the District of Columbia is to attain Statehood, and that can't be done without the support of the President and the 50 states. DC residents deserve the same rights and privileges that residents of every other state in the nation enjoy.