District of Columbia Delegate to Congress

Current Representative

What the Delegate Can and Cannot Do

Eleanor Holmes Norton holds nearly every legislative power a House member has. She introduces bills and amendments, sits on standing committees, votes in those committees, questions witnesses at hearings, and speaks and manages debate on the House floor. Rule III of the House rules gives delegates and the Resident Commissioner the same powers and privileges as members inside the Committee of the Whole and on the committees they serve.

The limit is final passage. Norton cannot vote when the full House decides whether a bill becomes law, and she cannot vote for Speaker. The Committee of the Whole vote has been switched on and off as House majorities changed, and it was restored at the start of the 116th Congress in 2019. It carries a safeguard: if delegate votes decide a recorded vote in the Committee of the Whole, the committee rises and the House votes again without them.

Committee work is where the office carries the most weight. A delegate who votes in committee helps decide which bills reach the floor at all, and a ranking member sets the minority agenda for that subcommittee. The District has an added stake in this, because Article I of the Constitution gives Congress authority over the seat of government, so the House votes on District laws and budgets that Norton herself cannot vote on.

Committee Assignments

In the 119th Congress Norton serves on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sitting on its Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency and its Subcommittee on Government Operations. She also serves on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, with seats on the subcommittees for Aviation, for Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, for Highways and Transit, and for Water Resources and Environment. She is the ranking member of the Highways and Transit subcommittee.

How Long the District Has Sent a Delegate

The District first had a delegate under the Organic Act of February 21, 1871, which set up a territorial government for Washington. Norton P. Chipman held the seat from 1871 to 1875, and then the office lapsed for almost a century. Congress restored it with the District of Columbia Delegate Act of 1970, and Walter Fauntroy was sworn in on April 19, 1971. Norton has held the seat since 1991, which makes her the longest serving person ever to hold it.

Population and Representation

The Census Bureau estimated the District population at 693,645 as of July 1, 2025. That is more people than live in Wyoming or Vermont, and each of those states sends a voting representative to the House and elects two senators. District residents pay federal income tax and have no voting representation in either chamber.

How the Delegate Is Elected

The District elects its delegate citywide in a single at-large contest, for a two year term that begins on January 3 after the election. Norton announced in January 2026 that she would not seek reelection, so the seat is open. Robert White is the Democratic nominee on the November 3, 2026 ballot, along with Denise Rosado for the Republicans, Kymone Freeman for the Statehood Green Party, and independent David Solana. The winner takes office in January 2027.

What is on the ballot nationally on November 3, 2026

Contact Your Representative

Sources

Officeholder, committee assignments, and office addresses come from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. The powers and limits of the office come from the Rules of the House of Representatives for the 119th Congress, Rule III. Population is the U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimate. The history of the seat comes from the District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871, the District of Columbia Delegate Act of 1970, and the Office of the Historian of the House. The 2026 candidate list comes from the District of Columbia Board of Elections. Checked August 12, 2026.