NEWS
KENYAN MCDUFFIE’S STATEMENT ON “IN THE MATTER OF ELISSA FOR DC
NO: OCF- 2022 FI-006”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 28, 2022
Contact: team@kenyanmcduffie2022.com
In response to the Office of Campaign Finance’s (OCF) Order that Councilmember Elissa Silverman made “an unauthorized in-kind contribution . . . to attempt to influence the composition and result of the 2022 Ward 3 Primary Election in violation of D.C. Official Code 1-1163.33(f)(d)(5),” Ward 5 Councilmember and At-Large Candidate Kenyan McDuffie released the following statement:
“The OCF has determined that Elissa Silverman broke the law, finding that she used taxpayer funds to try and influence the result of the 2022 Ward 3 Primary Election.
‘The law is the law, and we have to operate with campaign finance law which has clear guidelines.’
Those are Elissa Silverman’s own words, uttered in 2018 in response to an allegation that another candidate had violated D.C. campaign finance laws. This is a serious issue that goes to the very core of our local democracy. Long after Councilmember Silverman repays the taxpayer money that she spent without authorization, voters in Ward 3 and across the District will be left to wonder whether the outcome of the Ward 3 election would have been different had Councilmember Silverman not misused public campaign funds to influence the result. And, this is not the first time Councilmember Silverman has engaged in these sorts of political tactics to try and manipulate the outcome of an election.
As we have seen too often in our modern politics, some will stop at nothing, utilize any scorched-earth negative tactic and degrade our public discourse in an attempt to win at all costs. In this case, the OCF determined that Councilmember Silverman decided to spend taxpayer funds on a poll involving a Ward 3 Primary Election in which she was not even a candidate. ‘Clearly, this was not an acceptable expenditure of campaign funds.’
I took office in May 2012, during some very tough times in our city’s political history. Elected officials resigned and went to jail, eroding voters’ trust in our city’s leadership. That is why I authored some of the most comprehensive campaign finance and ethics reform laws shortly after voters elected me to the Council, paving the way for our Fair Elections Program.
The Fair Elections Program was established to encourage ‘more candidates to compete in the electoral process.’ Councilmember Silverman played politics with the integrity of the Fair Elections Program by putting her own self interest ahead of Ward 3 Democratic voters’.”
The OCF order can be found here.
The D.C. General Election is November 8, 2022.
McDuffie was first elected to represent Ward 5 on the Council of the District of Columbia in 2012. He was reelected in 2014 and 2018, both landslide victories. Before joining the Council, McDuffie spent his career in public service in numerous capacities: as a trial attorney for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice; as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Prince George’s County; as a policy advisor to the District of Columbia’s Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice; as an aid to Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton; and as a law clerk to a judge on the 7th Judicial Circuit of Maryland.
McDuffie graduated summa cum laude from Howard University with a bachelor's degree in political science and community development. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Maryland School of Law.
As a young man, McDuffie worked for four years as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service.
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President Obama’s Secretary Of Labor Tom Perez Endorses Kenyan McDuffie At-Large
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 29, 2022
Contact: team@kenyanmcduffie2022.com
(Washington, D.C.) -- Today, President Obama’s Secretary of Labor, Tom Perez, endorsed Ward 5 D.C. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie to become the District’s next At-Large Councilmember.
“I know Kenyan McDuffie very well. He was my research assistant when he was in lawschool and I was proud to have him as a trial attorney at the Civil Rights Division when Iled it,” states Perez. “Kenyan was a star at the DOJ and has been a star on the DCCouncil, fighting for justice and opportunity for everyone. He gets stuff done.”
Since joining the Council, McDuffie has ushered in one of the most comprehensive legislative agendas of any elected official in the District. Major policy accomplishments include:
● Public Safety: The Neighborhood Engagement and Achievement Results (NEAR) Act adopts a public health approach to crime prevention and intervention by addressing the root causes of crime in a long-term, sustainable way. The measure includes cognitive and family-based therapy and wraparound services. It also created the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE), which seeks to engage those who are at high risk of participating in or being a victim of, violent crime by providing them with evidence-based counseling, mentorship, and workforce development. To ensure transparency andaccountability, the NEAR Act also mandates open data and training to improve policing, including requiring the Metropolitan Police Department collect data on felony crimes, stops and frisks, and use of force incidents. Finally, it requires additional training for MPD officers on community policing, prevention of bias- based policing, and cultural competency.
● Affordable Housing: The Disposition of Land for Affordable Housing Amendment Act requires every disposition with DC-owned land sets aside aordable housing for very low and low-income households. Kenyan also fought to make sure DC dedicates half of all future unreserved surplus funds to theHousing Production Trust Fund, one of the District’s major tools used to produce and preserve affordable housing in DC.
● Baby Bonds: The Child Wealth Building Act establishes a District government-sponsored trust fund for babies born in the District into a household whose income does not exceed 500% of the Federal Poverty Level. Enrollment would be automatic, and each eligible child would receive an initial deposit of $1,000 followed by annual supplemental payments up to $2,000 depending on household income. Upon turning 18, the child may withdraw the funds for specified purposes including education, business ownership, business investment, property ownership, and retirement investments. All of these policies will continue to operate while making sensible and prudent steps to protect children and strengthen families.
Prior to McDuffie’s tenure on the DC Council, McDuffie served as a trial attorney for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where McDuffie investigated the conditions of nursing homes, prisons, jails and juvenile justice facilities. McDuffie served at the Justice Department under the leadership of Tom Perez, who at the time was the Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. McDuffie also served as a research assistant to Perez when the former Secretary of Labor was a law professor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law.
McDuffie, a 4th generation Washingtonian, was first elected to represent Ward 5 on the DC Council in 2012. He was re-elected in 2014 and 2018. In addition to his tenure at the Department of Justice, McDuffie worked in public service and the legal field in numerous capacities: as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Prince George’s County; as a policy advisor to the District of Columbia’s Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice; as a law clerk to a judge on the 7th Judicial Circuit of Maryland; and as a staffer to
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The D.C. The General Election takes place on November 8, 2022. Voters will be able to cast votes for two candidates in the At-Large D.C. Council race.
Website: https://www.mcduffiefordc.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kenyanmcduffie
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/McDuffieforDC/
Paid for by Kenyan McDuffie 2022, 1408 Montague St NW Washington, DC 20011.
Antonio Hunter, Treasurer.
McDUFFIE RAISES OVER $250K FROM ALL EIGHT WARDS IN JUST OVER A MONTH FOR D.C. COUNCIL AT-LARGE CAMPAIGN
Record campaign finance filing follows submission of over 6,000 signatures for ballot access.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 11, 2022
CONTACT:
Jonathan McNair
team@kenyanmcduffie2022.com
202-290-6059
(Washington, D.C.) – Ward 5 DC Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie's campaign for D.C. Council At-Large, Kenyan McDuffie 2022, raised $252,042.50 from the most diverse pool of donors across the District of Columbia.
McDuffie launched his campaign just over a month ago and led the list of At-Large candidates in fundraising. McDuffie was one of the last candidates to declare in the race but also the first candidate to submit more than double the number of signatures to qualify for access to the ballot.
"I am deeply inspired by the groundswell of support and contributions that came from every part of our city over the past month,” said McDuffie. “Between our fundraising and signature collection efforts, it is clear that residents across the District are rallying behind the candidate with the strongest record of delivering results and tackling the issues that matter most to voters: safer communities, better schools, good quality jobs, more affordable housing, and an equitable recovery from the pandemic, so that everyone, regardless of their socio-economic status, can live in vibrant communities that have healthy, safe, inclusive places for people and businesses to thrive.”
“As a supporter of public financing and tireless advocate for increasing diversity not only within our elected leadership and government and private sectors but amongst those who participate in our democracy – including through donations to campaigns, I was disappointed by the Office of Campaign Finance’s decision which precludes our campaign from participating in the 5-to-1 contribution match, Fair Elections program,” stated McDuffie. “Nevertheless, because of my work on campaign finance reform, the LLC loophole for corporate donations was closed and greater transparency was established in candidates’ fundraising reporting. Above all, our fundraising report demonstrates that we have built the most diverse coalition of supporters in the race. And we are just getting started.”
The D.C. The General Election takes place on November 8, 2022. Voters will be able to cast votes for two candidates in the At-Large Council race. Unfortunately, over half of D.C. voters do not exercise their voting rights by casting a second vote when it comes to the At-Large choices. McDuffie has urged other candidates, community leaders, the press, and neighbors to help raise awareness on D.C. voting rights during this election season.
McDuffie, a 4th generation Washingtonian, was first elected to represent Ward 5 on the Council of the District of Columbia in 2012. He was reelected in 2014 and 2018. Before joining the Council, McDuffie worked in public service and the legal field in numerous capacities: as a trial attorney for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice; in the U.S. House of Representatives; as a law clerk to a judge on the 7th Judicial Circuit of Maryland; as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Prince George’s County; and as a policy advisor to the District of Columbia’s Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice. Early on, McDuffie worked as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service.
McDuffie graduated summa cum laude from Howard University with a bachelor's degree in political science and community development. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Maryland School of Law.
Website: https://www.mcduffiefordc.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kenyanmcduffie
Paid for by Kenyan McDuffie 2022, 1408 Montague St NW Washington, DC 20011. Antonio Hunter, Treasurer. A copy of our report is filed with the Director of Campaign Finance of the District of Columbia Board of Elections.
Thursday August 4, 2022
We did it! Today, our campaign turned in over 5,000 signatures to the BOE to qualify for the Nov. 8 General Election ballot.
A huge thank you to all of our volunteers who helped gather and validate signatures as well as all who signed our petitions and helped us reach our goal!