1. DC Voting Rights Quiz Fixing the Hole in OurDemocracy

2. When were DC residents permitted to vote for the President of the US?
A. When the capital moved to Washington in 1801
B. After the Civil War
C. In 1964
D. They cannot vote for president.

3. After the 23rd Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in 1961, DC residents voted for President in 1964 for the first time.

4. How have states entered the Union previously
How have states entered the Union previously? Did it require a Constitutional Amendment?

5. Except for the original 13 states, all states have entered the Union through Congressional action.

6. True or False?
District residents do not have the same obligations as residents of other states.

7. False.
DC residents have all the same obligations as residents of other states:
We pay federal taxes (more than 28 other states).
We serve on juries.
We serve in the Armed Services. DC has more Medal of Honor winners than 29 other states.
We support our communities.

8. How many people are required to create a new state?
50,000
250,000
500,000
There is no set number.

9. There is no set number.
50,000 was the number of people a territory required to become a state in 1801.
In 2016 the District is home to more than 670,000 people; its population is greater than either Wyoming or Vermont.

10. True or False?
A state cannot be formed out of the District of Columbia, because its economy is not strong enough.
The only way it can survive financially is to continue to be heavily subsidized by the federal government.

11. False. The District has a booming, diverse economy.
The District’s budgets have been balanced for the last 20 years, and regularly accrue surpluses.
About 60% of the $8.8 billion collected in FY 2011 came from local taxes; 28% came from federal grants; and only 1% came from federal payments.
In comparison, states received 30% of their revenues from the federal government in FY 2013 with some getting more than 40% in federal funds.

12. The majority of DC residents work for the federal government.
True or False?
The majority of DC residents work for the federal government.

13. False. Like in any other city, DC residents do a variety of things:
They’re professionals—doctors, lawyers, pastors, managers.
They are highly skilled workers—plumbers, electricians, carpenters, painters.
They maintain our transportation systems.
They work in non-profit organizations.
And a large percentage of the federal workers commute daily from Maryland and Virginia—paying no taxes to the jurisdiction in which they work.

14. How many elected, voting representatives do DC citizens have in Congress?

15. None.
DC residents have never been able to vote for a member of Congress.
There is one non-voting Delegate in the House of Representatives. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton can introduce bills and vote in committee, but has no vote on the floor.
Although residents of all 50 states, regardless of size, have two voting Senators, the District has none.

16. True or False?
Once Congress passed the Home Rule Act in 1973, the District attained autonomy over its budget and legislation.

17. False.
Congress can and has made changes to laws passed by the District Council. In theory they have 30 days to make those changes; in reality they have made changes after longer periods of time.
Congress retains authority over the DC budget that comprises locally raised taxes.
No other jurisdiction in the United States is subject to this kind of Congressional intervention.

18. League of Women Voters DC
Thanks to Elinor Hart, LWV DC and Project Director, New Columbia Vision, whose “How Well Do you Know DC” quiz was the basis for this presentation.