D.C. to see more federal troops as Trump pushes to extend emergency

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 11, 2025

PRESS CONTACT:
Ilir Zherka 
202-262-4687 
[email protected]  

Washington, DC. The below is a press release in response to President Donald Trump’s announcements today that his administration is nationalizing the DC Metropolitan Police, increasing FBI activities in the District, and using the D.C. National Guard to police the city. It may be quoted in whole or in part. 

“DC residents are justifiably outraged by President Trump’s attempts today to take over law enforcement in our city,” said Jack Jacobson, DC Vote Board Chair. 

Under Section 740 of the Home Rule Act, the President can nationalize the D.C. Metropolitan Police when he “determines that special conditions of an emergency nature exist which require the use of the Metropolitan Police force for federal purposes.” He may do so for only 30 days. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a press release stating that the violent crime rate in D.C. is at a 30 year low. 

“Trump’s actions are unwarranted,” Jacobson added. “Violent crime is down by 26 percent in DC compared to last year and is at a 30-year low overall. While we all have more work to do, D.C.’s elected officials and its citizens are more than capable of dealing with public safety. Given that, DC Vote denounces President Trump’s takeover of the DC Metropolitan Police.” 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 5, 2025

PRESS CONTACT:
Ilir Zherka 
202-262-4687 
[email protected]  

It is our pleasure to announce that former executive director, Ilir Zherka, has returned to DC Vote as our part-time interim Executive Director.

In this role, Ilir will focus on advancing our advocacy and communications strategies, while supporting the Board of Directors as we continue rebuilding DC Vote. That rebuilding will include selecting a permanent executive director in the future.

Ilir led DC Vote for 10 years (2002-2012), during which he worked closely with the Board to significantly increase our reach, our fundraising, and, most importantly, our impact. He is now the CEO of Civica, a consulting firm. You can learn more about Ilir by reading his bio on the DC Vote website.

Over the past 18 months, Ilir has been helping DC Vote in different capacities as a consultant and will work for us as a consultant in this new role.

We look forward to continuing our work with him and all of you to defend DC home rule and advance statehood!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 12th, 2023

PRESS CONTACT:
Patrice Snow
[email protected]

Washington, DC – Today, Rep. Jim Jordan, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a candidate for the next Speaker of the House of Representatives, is holding a hearing on “Victims of Violent Crime in the District of Columbia.”

CeCe Grant, executive director of DC Vote stated, “Jim Jordan and the House Republicans think they have the qualifications to run the District of Columbia when they don’t live here and don’t know our community. Over and over again, Congress has proven themselves incapable of passing a budget, raising the debt ceiling, keeping the government running, or even electing a Speaker. Maybe Congress should leave the governance of the District of Columbia to the 700,000 people who live here and focus on solving our national and international problems.”

“If Congress cares about gun violence in DC, they should pass national gun safety legislation — not interfere in DC’s local governance,” said Alex Dodds from Hands Off DC. “Congress’s ongoing refusal to pass common sense gun safety legislation is the single largest reason that DC and communities all over the country are experiencing our epidemic of gun violence.”

The House Committee on the Judiciary should be focused on real solutions, like strengthening our background check system to prevent dangerous individuals from getting their hands on guns in the first place, stopping rogue gun sellers and dealers from funneling firearms to traffickers and straw purchasers, and holding bad actors up and down the industry supply chain accountable. Instead—with stunts like this, gun extremists are choosing to prioritize politics over public safety.

DC Vote, the nation’s largest organization dedicated to self-determination and freedom for the disenfranchised residents of the District of Columbia, along with partner organizations like Hands Off DC will be packing the Rayburn House Office Building hearing room to clearly express our #IndependenceForDC message to Congress. We ask for nothing less than what the citizens of Arizona or Ohio have – the freedom to vote for our local representatives qualified to tackle local issues including gun violence and community safety.
Grant added, “Also, It’s mystifying to me how Rep. Jordan has time to hold hearings on crime in cities all over the country, when his home district of Mansfield has been nicknamed ‘Danger City’ for having one of the highest crime rates in the entire nation. I’m sure his district could benefit from more of his attention.”

###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 24th, 2023

PRESS CONTACT:
Patrice Snow
[email protected]

Washington, DC – Today at 5:30pm EST, Bo Shuff will say goodbye to DC Vote and welcome his successor CeCe Grant at a party. At the Ciel Social Club on the AC Hotel’s rooftop, Shuff will celebrate his seven year tenure as the head of the nation’s leading advocacy and educational organization dedicated to DC Statehood by ushering in Grant’s tenure.

“I’ve had the privilege of being at the forefront of the fight for DC Statehood for the last seven years. It’s been an extreme privilege and tonight’s event is not only about expressing my sincere gratitude to everyone who has engaged with us online, made a donation, or attended a rally, but about welcoming CeCe Grant to DC Vote,” Shuff said. 

CeCe Grant has more than 15 years of experience in government affairs, political campaigns, and grassroots advocacy. She is a nationally known political strategist and has led efforts across the country to pass bipartisan legislation, while building strong coalitions with community, labor, faith, business, and environmental groups. CeCe worked for Congress for three years as a policy advisor where she played a critical role in securing federal funding for billions of dollars for infrastructure projects across Southeast Michigan. She also served in the Obama Administration working for the U.S. Secretary of Transportation.  

A native Detroiter, she holds a master’s degree in Legislative Affairs from George Washington University and a second master’s in Communications from Wayne State University.  

“I am so excited to begin my tenure as the new Executive Director of DC Vote. DC is a place near and dear to my heart. I fell in love with DC during my first visit here in 2008. The vibrant neighborhoods, diverse communities, and inspirational leaders who stand up every day to fight for a better America,” Grant said.
Grant finished, “I’ve spent 15 years building coalitions and movements on a range of issues, including: climate change, public transportation, healthcare reform, and flipping districts from red to blue. I am fired up to roll up my sleeves and get to work for Statehood and equal representation for the 700,000 residents who call DC home.”

For more information about tonight’s event or to RSVP, simply email Kelsye Adams at [email protected].

###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 23rd, 2023

PRESS CONTACT:
Patrice Snow
[email protected]

Washington, DC – DC Vote, the nation’s leading advocacy and educational organization dedicated to DC Statehood, along with Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III, and Arndrea Waters King today announced more than 100 organizations across racial, cultural and generational lines have joined the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington. Hundreds of thousands of people have been mobilized in the weeks leading up to the large-scale demonstration at the Lincoln Memorial on this Saturday, August 26th, which will not serve as a commemoration but a continuation of what started in 1963.

“DC Statehood is an issue that crosses intersectional lines including the freedom to vote, the freedom to determine one’s own destiny, racial justice, economic justice, employment discrimination, access to abortion, and the growing assaults on the rights of women, LGBTQ Americans, immigrants, people of color, and democracy,” DC Vote’s Patrice Snow said. “It is sad that some 60 years after the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ‘s call for justice and jobs that we are still fighting for these same rights. DC Vote will be there proudly representing the disenfranchised 700,000 Americans who call Washington, DC home but don’t have full voting rights.”

Newly released data from the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA), a partner organization, shows economic conditions are as bad — if not worse — for Black and Brown Americans as they were 60 years ago. The median wealth gap between Black and white households has widened by $40,000 over the last 60 years, from $121,000 in 1963 to $161,000 today. Student debt, which overwhelmingly hits Black Americans harder, is a driving factor for this yawning gap – with limited relief in sight after the Supreme Court struck down the Biden administration’s plan to wipe as much as $20,000 per borrower. This new data comes amid the backdrop of Florida’s relentless attempts to erase Black history from the classroom, as other regions of the country look to follow suit. Gov. Ron DeSantis and state leadership have not relented on a new, warped curriculum promoting a false narrative that Black people benefited from slavery. 

That same Court has peeled back rights on LGBTQ Americans, women, voting rights, and organized Labor in the last decade. All the while, hateful rhetoric has led to violent attacks Black, Brown, Jewish, AAPI and other historically marginalized Americans. All of these alarming issues speak to the dire threats democracy in the United States faces today. 

The pre-program for the event will begin at 8:00 a.m. ET with the main event beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. Following the program, a march will begin through the streets of the Nation’s Capital, culminating at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.
 

A full list of partners can be found below: 

Advocates for Youth

African American Mayors Association

All Souls Movement

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated

American Federation of Teachers

Anti-Defamation League (ADL)

APIAVote

Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC

Atlas Strategy Group

Austin Justice Coalition

Bayard Rustin Liberation Initiative Inc

Bet Mishpachah, DC’s LGBTQ+ Synagogue

Brown and Gold PAC – Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Incorporated

Capitol Ballroom Council, inc.

Center for American Progress

Center for Black Equity

Center for Economic and Policy Research

Center for Reproductive Rights

Central Conference of American Rabbis

Change Administration (Lincoln University of PA Student Government Association)

College Democrats of America

Common Defense

Community Justice

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI)

DC Vote

Declaration for American Democracy Coalition

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated

DemCast USA

Democratic National Committee

Emerge

EMILYs List

ERA Coalition

Everytown For Gun Safety

FairVote

Family Equality

FPWA

Generation Ratify

GLAAD

GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD)

Good Trouble Think-Tank

Higher Heights for America

Hip Hop Caucus

Human Rights Campaign

In Our Own Voice: National Black Women Reproductive Justice Agenda

Interfaith Voices for Reproductive Justice

Japanese American Citizens League

Keshet

LatinoJustice PRLDEF

League of Women Voters

NAACP

NAACP LDF

NARAL Pro-Choice America

National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC)

National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR)

National Coalition on Black Civic Participation (NCBCP)

National Council of Asian Pacific Americans

National Council of Jewish Women

National Council of Negro Women (NCNW)

National Immigration Law Center

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice

National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund

National Organization for Women (NOW)

National Organization of Concerned Black Men Inc.

National Partnership for Women & Families

National Queer API Alliance (NQAPIA)

National Urban League

National Women’s Law Center

NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice

Next Generation Action Network (NGAN)

OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates

Our Time to Act United

Oxfam America

PFLAG National

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

Reproaction

Sanctuary of Hope LA/ March 4 Equity

SEIU

Shaare Tefila Congregation

SisterReach and SisterReach Illinois

SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Southern Poverty Law Center

Stand Up America

Student Debt Crisis Center

Students Learn Students Vote Coalition

The Arc of Justice

The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus

The House of Garcon

The Jews of Color Mishpacha Project

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

The Phoenix Affect

The TransLatin@ Coalition

The Uniters

The Workers Circle

UNIDOS

United by Equity

URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity

Virginia Moms for Change

Voto Latino

We Testify

YWCA USA

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated

###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 14th, 2023

PRESS CONTACT:
Patrice Snow
[email protected]

Washington, DC – Freshman Representative Andy Ogles of Tennessee, a newly-elected MAGA Republican who barely passed college with a degree in “Liberal Studies,” filed a bill on Friday to repeal DC Home Rule. In light of this latest extremist move by an extremist Congress intent on targeting DC and her 700,000 disenfranchised residents, DC Vote’s communications director Patrice Snow released the following statement:

“Here we go again. One can only assume Rep. Andy Ogles filed one of his first pieces of legislation, which has nothing to do with helping the people of Tennessee’s 5th congressional district, because he needs to hide his embarrassment from news stories about his lying to his constituents and falsifying his college transcripts. In addition, no one knows where Ogles’ district office is as he reportedly hides from the people he works for.”

Snow finished, “Knowing this, it’s mystifying to me and those in the DC Statehood movement how Ogles thinks he has the qualifications to run the District of Columbia. Because while Congress is suffering with credit downgrades due to its inability to pass funding bills, Fitch recently rated the DC government as financially stable. Perhaps Congressman Ogles should leave the governance of the District of Columbia to the 700,000 people who live here and their duly elected officials and be more concerned with solving the problems back home in Tennessee’s 5th.”

###