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(Washington, DC) – Today, the Council of the District of Columbia unanimously passed the Advisory Referendum on the State of New Columbia Admission Act Resolution of 2016, PR21-0839. The resolution approves the submission of a proposed advisory referendum to the Board of Elections that would allow voters to support statehood and ask to petition Congress to enact a statehood Admission Act, including boundaries of the future state of New Columbia and a constitution.
“This is a historic day for Statehood for Washington, DC,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “The New Columbia Statehood Commission approved our Bold Path to Statehood plan in April and we have been working tirelessly to engage residents and the Council around statehood efforts. I have faith that District residents will overwhelmingly support this referendum paving the way for our petition to Congress for DC statehood and finally remedying one of the biggest civil rights injustices of our time.”
The advisory referendum will have voters answer one question with four parts:
1. Do you want to become the 51st state?
2. Do you ratify the state constitution?
3. Do you approve of the boundaries?
4. Do you commit to a representative form of government?
The New Columbia Statehood Commission is working vigorously to activate and engage all residents in a strategy to pursue statehood for all Washingtonians. The comprehensive review of the proposed constitution included boundaries drafted by the DC Office of Planning. The proposed boundaries establish a small federal district that includes the White House, Congress, the Supreme Court, and the mall and downtown national monuments. It also outlines the boundaries of the 51st State, which is where the nearly 700,000 residents of Washington, DC live. Overall the commission received over 500 public comments on the draft constitution from residents across all eight wards. The Commission finalized the draft constitution after review and consideration of the provided comments.
The Council will now submit the resolution to the DC Board of Elections. Voters will be able to vote on the Advisory Referendum for Statehood on November, 8 2016. For more information about the New Columbia Statehood Commission, visit. www.statehood.dc.gov.