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Analysis: How Trayon White reclaims council seat
Analysis: How Trayon White reclaims council seat

Yahoo

time3 days ago

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Analysis: How Trayon White reclaims council seat

Washington (DC News Now) — Ousted Ward 8 Council member, Trayon White, reclaims his seat. White winning a special election this week with 29 percent of the votes. DC Board of Elections report low voter turnout with around 12 percent casting a ballot. T he special election was trigged by White's explosion. The DC Council unanimously voting to remove him in February after finding he broke city ethics rules. White was arrested last year and is currently awaiting trail on federal bribery charges. Howard University professor, Robinson Woodward-Burns, joins Capitol Review on how White was able to do it. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Former DC councilmember wins back seat months after being expelled over bribery charge
Former DC councilmember wins back seat months after being expelled over bribery charge

Fox News

time6 days ago

  • Politics
  • Fox News

Former DC councilmember wins back seat months after being expelled over bribery charge

A recently expelled D.C. Council member has won the seat from which he was removed five months ago after being charged with accepting cash bribes. Trayon White is set to reclaim the seat he vacated back in February when members of the D.C. Council voted unanimously to remove him from the position, a first in the city's history. In August 2024, the FBI arrested White after he was accused by federal authorities of agreeing to accept $156,000 in bribes. His trial is scheduled to begin in January 2026. White denies any wrongdoing and is pleading not guilty in the federal case, despite apparent video of him pocketing allegedly cash-stuffed envelopes. A Justice Department statement from August 2024 alleges that White agreed to accept the bribes in exchange for "using his official position to pressure renewal" of contracts valued at $5.2 million. White was allowed to run in the special election because he had not been convicted of a felony. "So we sent a message loud and clear to D.C. City Council that Trayon White is here to stay," White said in his victory speech, according to the Associated Press, which called the race. The outlet added that the troubled ousted council member told the story of his return to office as one of resilience and redemption. Now, D.C. Council members are facing a choice: Do they allow White to take back his seat or do they expel him again, effectively disregarding the will of Ward 8 voters? They still have time to decide as White will not be sworn into office until after the election results are certified in August. However, according to Axios, the council has the ability to preemptively block White from taking office due to the corruption scandal. White's story echoes that of controversial former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry in more ways than one. Barry famously staged a historic political comeback after the FBI caught him on camera smoking crack cocaine. White is being represented by Frederick D. Cooke Jr., who also served as Barry's defense attorney, according to the Associated Press. Furthermore, after his two mayoral terms, Barry served as the Ward 8 representative on the D.C. Council, first winning the seat in 2005. He held the position until his death in 2014.

Trayon White projected winner of DC's Ward 8 special election
Trayon White projected winner of DC's Ward 8 special election

Yahoo

time7 days ago

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Trayon White projected winner of DC's Ward 8 special election

WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Despite a controversial past, Trayon White is the projected winner of the special election for Ward 8 councilmember on Tuesday. The FBI arrested White in August of 2024 following a federal bribery indictment. The other 12 D.C. Council members conducted an internal investigation that unveiled city law violations and to expel White from the council. Since White had not been convicted of a felony, he was free to enter the special election. Ward 8 residents cast their ballots for special election in final day of voting White was just one of the candidates vying for the Ward 8 position. He faced ANC Chair Salim Adofo, Ward 8 native and former ANC Chair Mike Austin and former aide to Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and former Mayor Vincent Gray Sheila Bunn. The Associated Press announced that White, 41, won the election around 9:40 p.m. on Tuesday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Despite scandal and a looming corruption trial, Trayon White wins vote to return to the DC Council
Despite scandal and a looming corruption trial, Trayon White wins vote to return to the DC Council

The Independent

time16-07-2025

  • Politics
  • The Independent

Despite scandal and a looming corruption trial, Trayon White wins vote to return to the DC Council

A former D.C. Council member is returning to his seat, five months after he was kicked out for his involvement in a federal bribery investigation. Trayon White defeated three challengers in a special election Tuesday to fill the Ward 8 council seat that has been vacant since his expulsion in February. White, 41, was arrested by the FBI last August. After an internal investigation, the remaining 12 D.C. Council members voted unanimously to oust him from the council. However, White was free to enter the special election because he had not been convicted on a felony. He won reelection just a few months later in an indication of a scandal-proof popularity that echoes his political mentor: former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry. His federal trial won't start until January 2026, but preliminary evidence includes videos of White pocketing cash-stuffed envelopes from a city contractor, allegedly in return for securing lucrative city contracts. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below. WASHINGTON (AP) — Tuesday's special election for the Ward 8 seat on the D.C. Council will determine whether the council will turn the page on an awkward and embarrassing chapter or remain locked in an uncomfortable dynamic with a political figure whose popularity has rendered him almost impervious to scandal. Trayon White, the former Ward 8 representative, is fighting to return to the same legislative body that expelled him five months ago — and may just expel him again if he wins. White, 41, was arrested by the FBI last August on bribery charges. He won re-election to a third term just a few months later—an indication of a street-level popularity that echoes his political mentor: iconic former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry. After an internal investigation, the remaining 12 D.C. Council members voted unanimously to oust White from the council in February. However, White was free to enter the special election because he has not been convicted of a felony. His federal trial won't start until 2026; preliminary evidence includes videos of White pocketing cash-stuffed envelopes from a city contractor, allegedly in return for securing lucrative city contracts. White faces a trio of challengers: Mike Austin, Sheila Bunn and Salim Adofo. All three boast experience either working as staffers for D.C. Council members or in the Advisory Neighborhood Commissions — hyper-local bodies that frequently serve as training grounds for future council members. Adofo lost to White in the 2024 Democratic primary, securing 28% of the vote. All three challengers have pointed to White's legal troubles and emphasized a need to restore credibility and public trust to the Ward 8 council seat. White has done minimal public campaigning or fundraising, skipped multiple candidate debates and left early from a debate. White came up in local politics as a protege of Barry. And he has been channeling his mentor's defiant, populist playbook since his arrest. White refused to cooperate with the internal D.C. Council inquiry. His lawyer, Frederick D. Cooke Jr., also served as Barry's defense attorney. And White has sought to stoke lingering suspicion of the FBI among Black Washingtonians, many of whom believe Barry was unfairly targeted by the 1990 FBI sting that caught him on camera smoking crack cocaine. A White victory would place the D.C. Council in an immediate quandary. They could expel White again, despite the will of the Ward 8 voters, or they could simply carry on with him among their ranks again and wait for the federal corruption trial to begin early next year.

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