D.C. Council member Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5) plans to file an appeal Thursday of a D.C. Board of Elections ruling that disqualified him from running for the city’s next attorney general.
The three-member elections board on Monday determined that McDuffie was ineligible to appear on the Democratic primary ballot because he has not been “actively engaged” as an attorney — language that references a D.C. code statute that lists qualifications for the attorney general position. The board’s decision was the result of a successful challenge brought by fellow candidate Bruce V. Spiva, who is now mounting an effort — including a six-figure television and digital ad buy — to try to build momentum for his own race.
Chuck Thies, a senior adviser to McDuffie’s campaign and longtime political strategist, said the team will file a notice with the D.C. Court of Appeals on Thursday in an effort to overturn the board’s decision, which stunned McDuffie’s backers, including Dionna Maria Lewis, a trial attorney who served on the Board of Elections between 2016 and 2019.
Lewis said her reaction to Monday’s ruling was “utter shock,” namely because she feels the board typically errs on the side of enfranchising candidates to grant them ballot access.
