Against the backdrop of mass shootings around the country, the mayoral campaign reflects a wider dynamic playing out in longtime Democratic strongholds, with progressives facing off against party traditionalists over crime.
“Call it sky blue vs. Tar Heel blue,” said Michael Fauntroy, an associate professor of policy and government at George Mason University. “People have an anxiousness around crime. There’s no question about that.”
This ideological push-pull is taking place under the watchful eye of Republican politicians eager to claim that Democrats cannot control or protect their own cities. The winner of Tuesday’s primary is the prohibitive favorite in the November general election.
Crime and public safety have dominated the campaign. Homicides have risen for four years straight, and the 2021 murder count of 227 was the highest since 2003. In January, a candidate for the D.C. Council, Nate Fleming, was carjacked at gunpoint.
R&I – FS
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