Election Day: Do you know where your polling place is?

Perhaps you've been busy watching Dan Snyder tunnel his way to China, but there's a little election today in the District to fill the Council seat vacated by Kwame "Fully Loaded" Brown when he assumed the Council Chair seat.

There are nine candidates vying for the seat, including one Republican (Pat Mara) and one woman (Dorothy Douglas). Others running include professional politician Vincent Orange (who apparently walks and talks like Ward 8 residents), "incumbent" Sekou Biddle, Fenty write-in campaign leader (and, at 27, a spring chicken) Josh Lopez, former Adams-Morgan ANC commissioner and tie-detester Bryan Weaver, Ward 8's Tom Brown, Green Party candidate Alan Page, and the mysterious Arkan Haile.

Not sure where you should be voting? The DC Board of Elections website can help you with that. Happy voting!

Today: Vote Early, Vote Often

So, there's a little election going on today, and more is at stake then simply crowning Vince Gray leader of our constitutionally prescribed federal district. There are some contested ANC races (including several with potential ramifications in and around the 14th and U areas), City Council seats up for grabs, and an amendment that would grant the residents of DC the right, beginning in 2014, to elect DC's attorney general. A quick recap:

In area ANC races, several are worth watching. In ANC1B, Peter "The Commish" Raia is being challenged by not one but two residents for his seat on the ANC-- Tucker V.E. Gallagher and Aaron Spencer. Raia has been a controversial figure of sorts along U Street due to the ongoing debate about the volume of bars and restaurants along the corridor--although over here at 14th & You, we have to wonder if anyone could be non-controversial while heading up ANC1B's Liquor Licensing Committee.

A bit south and west, ANC2B is hope to another contested race involving a controversial figure. Ramon Estrada, who has served in the role for eight years and is seeking reelection, is being challenged by Sunit Talapatra. Estrada withstood a challenge to his seat in the 2008, so it will be interesting to see whether he survives another race, or whether those dissatisfied with his representation are successful in voting him out.

Finally, in ANC2F, in addition to a contest for a seat being vacated by current commissioner Andrew Werth, commissioner and Community Development Committee chair Mike Bernardo is being challenged for his seat by Kate McMahon. As individuals who are residents of ANC2F and thus very familiar with Mike's tenure on the ANC, we can personally vouch for his work as a Commissioner--and quite frankly, nothing in Kate's interview with Borderstan would sway us to her candidacy. So, I suppose this becomes our 14thandyou's first quasi-endorsement of a candidate.

Moving away from the ANCs, another issue on the ballot worth considering is the so-called "Attorney General amendment," which would allow the residents of DC to elect their attorney general, rather than have the AG appointed by the mayor. The Washington Post's editorial board and current AG Peter Nickles oppose this idea, which is reason enough for many to support it. Does it risk turning the AG into a political position? Of course it does. But having an AG independent of the mayor's own political agenda wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

Finally, there are a few City Council seats up for grabs--including Ward One's Jim Graham--but it's unlikely that any will change hands. We're still pretty much a one-party town, after all.

Oh yeah, and there's that pesky Fenty write-in campaign that continues to plod along...

If you're not sure of the location and hours of your nearest voting station, DC's Board of Elections website can help you with that. Now, get out there and exercise your civic duty.

Election Madness

Over here at 14thandyou, we're big believers in fulfilling your civic duty by voting, even if our Democratic process can seem a little crazy at times.

Unless you've been living in a cave (or perhaps spending too much time hanging out in a local basement), you know that this coming Tuesday you have an opportunity to vote in DC's primary elections, which means a chance to elect DC's next mayor, city council members, ANC commissioners.

The DC Board of Elections has a lot of really helpful information on their website, including a list of polling places, information on early voting (which started last week) and sample Ward 1 and 2 ballots for the Democratic, Republican and Green parties.

But what of the actual races, you ask? Rumor has it that some mayoral race or something is going on, but I haven't heard much about that. There's also an at-large DC Council seat (a battle between Phil Mendolson, Clark Ray, and Michael D. Brown--no not THAT Michael Brown, the other one) and Council Chairmanship (where you have a choice between two colors--Brown or Orange) up-for-grabs. In Ward 1, longtime incumbent Jim Graham is up for reelection, with City Paper-endorsed challenger Brian Weaver nipping at his heals.

At the local level, all of the local ANC seats are will be up for grabs in the general election in November, but only five are contested. Two of the most interesting include Peter Raia's seat on ANC!B and Ramon Estrada's in ANC2B. Borderstan has a great recap of the contested ANC races. In addition to all of the other press, the City Paper has also put together complete endorsements and an interesting 2010 elections poll (sample: How many Vincent Gray supporters are Redskins fans?).

The only people who can't vote in the primary elections on Tuesday? Those who aren't registered members of the Democratic, Republican or Green parties. No worries, though: you can register at the polls if you haven't already.

See you on Tuesday!