The New York Times has a breathless story this morning about the exodus of registered Republicans from the GOP in the wake of the January 6 assault on the Capitol. According to the Times, nearly 140,000 people in the 25 states with readily available data had bailed on the party—including 33,000 in California, 12,000 in Pennsylvania, and 10,000 in Arizona. “There’s nothing left in the G.O.P. for me to stand for,” one party-switcher told the paper.
But there’s apparently at least one bright spot for the party of Trump: The District of Columbia. Though DC was the epicenter of the insurrection that led to Trump’s second impeachment, District records show that the number of Republicans in the capital increased during the month of January, from 30,130 to 30,146—a jump of 16 whole voters. That could make a difference in a close race. Unfortunately for the GOP, their presidential candidate only managed six percent in last year’s election, suggesting it may be awhile before anything gets decided by 16 votes.
Still, the increase is interesting. Party registration typically falls post-election. Democratic numbers in the District, for instance, fell from 403,291 to 403,124 in January. That means the delta between the parties is now only 372,978 voters.
The biggest Republican bastions in the city were concentrated in Wards 2, 3, and 6, where roughly one in ten voters registered with the GOP. While it’s unlikely the demographics of Wards 2 and 3 will change in the coming months, Ward 6 might see a major political shift as young Trumpian staffers clear out from their Waterfront luxury apartments.
Jane is a Chicago transplant who now calls Cleveland Park her home. Before joining Washingtonian, she wrote for Smithsonian Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times. She is a graduate of Northwestern University, where she studied journalism and opera.
