Yes, residents of Washington, D.C. do vote, but not in every election a state resident would. D.C. voters cast ballots for President, for a non-voting Delegate to the U.S. House, and for local officials including the Mayor, the D.C. Council, and neighborhood commissioners. They have no senators, no voting member of the House, and no say in choosing the judges who sit on their local courts. Every law their elected Council passes can still be overridden by a Congress in which they have no voting representation.
What D.C. Residents Can Vote For
President and Vice President
Before 1961, D.C. residents had no vote for President at all. The 23rd Amendment changed that, granting the District electors in the Electoral College as though it were a state, but capped at the number held by the least populous state.1Library of Congress. U.S. Constitution – Twenty-Third Amendment In practice, that means three electoral votes. D.C.’s population of roughly 694,000 exceeds that of Wyoming and Vermont, but the cap holds.2U.S. Census Bureau. District of Columbia QuickFacts
Local Government
D.C. residents have full voting rights in local elections under the District of Columbia Home Rule Act of 1973. Before that law, Congress ran routine city business itself, down to road maintenance and school budgets.3Council of the District of Columbia. D.C. Home Rule
Voters elect a Mayor as the District’s chief executive and a 13-member Council: one representative from each of the eight wards, four at-large members, and a Chairman elected at-large. Council members serve four-year terms.4Council of the District of Columbia. Councilmembers The Council passes local laws on taxes, housing, education, public safety, and everything else a state legislature would handle.
Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners
At the most local level, D.C. is divided into roughly 300 single-member districts, each of which elects an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner. ANC seats are unpaid, two-year positions. Their scope covers planning, streets, recreation, social services, education, health, public safety, budget, sanitation, and zoning. The D.C. government is required by law to give “great weight” to ANC recommendations on matters like liquor and entertainment licensing.5D.C. Law Library. DC Code 1-309.10 – Advisory Neighborhood Commissions
What D.C. Residents Cannot Vote For
Voting Members of Congress
D.C. elects a single non-voting Delegate to the House of Representatives. The Delegate can introduce legislation, speak on the floor, and serve on committees, but cannot vote when the full House votes on bills or resolutions. The District has no representation at all in the Senate.6statehood. DC Governance That means D.C. residents have no vote in confirming Supreme Court justices, cabinet members, ambassadors, or federal judges.
D.C. voters also elect two “shadow” senators and one “shadow” representative whose only role is to lobby Congress for statehood. Those positions have no official standing in Congress, cannot vote, and cannot attend closed sessions.6statehood. DC Governance They exist to make the point, not to legislate.
Local Judges
Something that surprises many residents: D.C. does not elect its judges. Judges on the D.C. Superior Court and the D.C. Court of Appeals are nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, an arrangement unique among local courts nationwide.7District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission. Joining the District of Columbia Courts Because the District has no senator, its residents have no direct advocate during confirmation for the judges who will hear their local cases.
Why the Gap Exists
The root of D.C.’s status is Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 of the Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever” over the federal capital.8Cornell Law School. Clause XVII – U.S. Constitution Annotated The Home Rule Act delegated day-to-day governance to elected D.C. officials, but Congress kept its constitutional authority. The Act explicitly preserves “the right, at any time, to exercise its constitutional authority as legislature for the District, by enacting legislation for the District on any subject.”9DC Council. District of Columbia Home Rule Act – Public Law 93-198
The Congressional Review Period
Every law the D.C. Council passes must sit before Congress for 30 days before it takes effect. Criminal legislation goes through a 60-day review.10Council of the District of Columbia. How a Bill Becomes a Law During that window, any member of the House or Senate can introduce a joint resolution of disapproval. If both chambers pass it and the President signs it, the D.C. law is voided.
Appropriations Riders
The more common tool is the annual D.C. appropriations bill, where Congress can attach policy riders that block D.C. from spending its own locally raised tax dollars on programs Congress dislikes. The fiscal year 2026 appropriations bill, as passed out of committee, included riders that would block D.C. from implementing its noncitizen voting law, repeal the District’s Death with Dignity Act, prohibit enforcement of its vehicle emission standards, and undo parts of the District’s youth sentencing reform law.11Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. Norton Calls Anti-Home Rule Riders on Committee-Passed D.C. Appropriations Bill “Irresponsible” and “Condescending”
Who Can Vote in D.C.
D.C. has some of the most permissive voter access rules in the country. The District offers same-day voter registration, meaning eligible residents can register and cast a ballot on Election Day itself. No photo identification is required at the polls; D.C. uses signature verification and other non-document methods to confirm identity.
Incarcerated Residents
In 2020, Mayor Bowser signed the Restore the Vote Amendment, which authorized voting by D.C. residents incarcerated with felony convictions. The law was originally enacted on an emergency basis, and the Council later passed a permanent version. D.C. is one of only a few jurisdictions nationwide that allows currently incarcerated people to vote.
Noncitizen Residents
In 2022, the D.C. Council enacted the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act, extending voting rights in local elections to noncitizen residents. The law passed through the 30-day congressional review period without a formal disapproval resolution, so it technically took effect. Congress has since moved to block it. The House passed a standalone bill to prohibit noncitizen voting in D.C. in May 2024, and the FY2026 D.C. appropriations bill includes a rider barring the District from spending any local funds to implement the law or register noncitizen voters.11Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. Norton Calls Anti-Home Rule Riders on Committee-Passed D.C. Appropriations Bill “Irresponsible” and “Condescending” Implementation remains effectively stalled by the spending restriction.
The Statehood Question
D.C. residents pay more federal taxes per capita than residents of any state and more in total federal taxes than at least 12 states.12statehood. Frequently Asked Questions about Statehood for the People of DC More than 8,000 D.C. residents serve in the military.13statehood. Why Statehood for DC The phrase “taxation without representation” appears on D.C. license plates for a reason.
Statehood is the most commonly proposed fix and, constitutionally, the simplest. It requires only a majority vote in both chambers of Congress and a presidential signature; no constitutional amendment is needed.14statehood. Path to Statehood The Washington, D.C. Admission Act, reintroduced in the 119th Congress in January 2025, would shrink the constitutionally required federal district to a small core containing the Capitol, the White House, the Supreme Court, and the National Mall. The remaining residential and commercial areas would become a new state.15Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. Norton, Van Hollen Announce Introduction of D.C. Statehood Bill The bill has passed the House twice, in the 116th and 117th Congresses, but has never cleared the Senate. Until it does, D.C. residents will keep voting for a President who appoints their judges, paying taxes to a government that can overrule their local laws, and electing a delegate to Congress who cannot vote when it counts.