The Democratic Governors Association on Tuesday welcomed D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser into its ranks, marking the latest effort by Democratic leaders to support making the District the nation’s 51st state.
Announcing the move on CNN, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who chairs the association, acknowledged that Bowser is not a governor. But citing the mayor’s role in advocating for D.C. residents and combating the coronavirus pandemic in the city, Lujan Grisham asserted that Bowser is already “an executive leader in the District working on all of the things Democratic governors are responsible [for].”
Lujan Grisham’s announcement comes days after Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) dealt a blow to statehood advocates by announcing that he does not support legislation that would admit D.C. as a state.
