McDuffie concedes to Lewis George in DC mayoral primary

Former Washington DC at-large councilmember Kenyan McDuffie conceded to Janeese Lewis George in the Democratic mayoral primary, sending the socialist candidate to November's general election.

In a city dominated by Democratic voters, Lewis George will be widely expected to win November's election.

"While the final certification process will continue, it is clear that the voters have chosen a different path," McDuffie said in a statement Thursday. "Earlier this morning, I called Councilmember Janeese Lewis George to congratulate her on her victory and wish her success as she prepares for the general election."

In the latest results posted Wednesday evening, Lewis George had received 52.85% of the votes compared to 36.45% from McDuffie. Rini Sampath and Gary Goodweather both have 3% of the votes, with 113,838 ballots having been counted.

"I want to thank every voter who participated in this election, the tens of thousands of Washingtonians who placed their faith in our campaign, and all our volunteers, supporters, staff, family members, community leaders and neighbors who believed in our vision for the future of our city," McDuffie said.

Lewis George, who was born and raised in DC before joining the DC Council in 2020, has not publicly commented on McDuffie conceding the election.

She is now poised to succeed Muriel Bowser, the first woman to be elected three terms as DC mayor. Bowser announced last year she would not seek a fourth term.

President Donald Trump said last week he "wouldn't like it" if Lewis George was elected mayor, telling reporters "maybe we'll take back Washington."

Lewis George has pushed back on Trump's comments, but said she is willing to work with the Trump administration and find areas for compromise.

“My approach to Donald Trump is one where I set a line that there is going to have to be (that) DC autonomy and DC statehood are non-negotiables, our immigrant community and neighbors, our Black youth are non-negotiables,” Lewis George told The Guardian. “But if there are things you want to work with together, I’m happy to do that."

Mike Stunson is the DC Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network.