Six candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for D.C. mayor squared-off during a Monday night forum at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library.
The mostly civil, 90-minute discussion, addressed a range of issues, including housing, public safety, immigration policy and government accountability.
Much of the event, however, centered on affordability concerns tied to rising electric bills.
Some Pepco customers saw sharp bill increases during the cold weather this winter. The utility told the D.C. Council during a February hearing that since June 2025, customers in the District have seen an average monthly increase of about $22.
Ward 4 D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George said more assistance is needed for low-income residents.
鈥淎llowing people not to have to opt-in to some of the low-income programs but to automatically be enrolled in those programs,” Lewis George said.
She also said she would stop utility cutoffs for residents who fall behind on payments.
Former at-Large D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie suggested a different approach to hold down costs.
鈥淢ake sure that we hold data centers accountable and that they are responsible for the increases. They should pay their fair share,” McDuffie said.
Former D.C. Council member Vincent Orange said he would use the power of the mayor’s office to pressure utility companies.
鈥淎s the mayor of the District of Columbia, you have the platform and you can put the squeeze on the utilities,” he said.
Candidate Rini Sampath, a federal contractor and the first South Asian candidate on the D.C. mayoral ballot, advocated for sustainable energy investments and accountability.
鈥淧epco will have to fight to continue to prove that they are the No. 1 utility provider for Washingtonians,” she said.
Hope Solomon, who was born and raised in D.C. and whose family has operated a business in the District since the 1970s, said transparency is lacking.
鈥淲e need a mayor in there that’s going to ‘open the kimono’ and figure out what the hell is going on in their backdoor conversations, and I feel your pain,” she said, adding “We can’t keep paying these high bills and getting zero results.”
Gary Goodweather, a D.C. businessman and Army veteran, offered a unique proposal to address the issue.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to build a fourth-generation nuclear reactor, a small module nuclear reactor, to bring down electricity prices for D.C. residents,” he said.
Goodweather also said he wants The District to become one of the largest energy producers in the U.S.
The D.C. Democratic primary is June 16.
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