WASHINGTON — Editor's Note: This is one installment in a series of profiles of the candidates running in D.C.'s mayoral race leading up to the June 21 primary elections.
In just days, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser will be able to predict at least one thing during this pandemic. She’ll know whether voters want her to stick around to lead the city out of it or not.
Mayor Bowser has had eight years to push an agenda around safer streets, affordable housing and stronger schools – but COVID-19 was a game-changer. We recently met up with the mayor and her young daughter, Miranda, to hear what she's pledging to do this time around - if the voters return her to office.
The mayor says she’s running to lead the city through its COVID comeback. She hopes her hometown with its 700,000 residents will see her as the one to move the city forward.
But as we met up on the grounds of the Parks at Walter Reed, her No. 1 constituent is the one she needs to win over the most. And 4-year-old Miranda would like a word or two with her Mommy at the end of a long day at school.
Miranda: “Mama, how was your meeting?”
Mayor Bowser: “My meeting was good”
Miranda: “Mom, I like your outfit.”
Mayor Bowser: “You like it, it’s pretty, right?”
This playground is in the heart of Ward 4, a place Bowser represented on the council. It sits amid the vast 66 acres of land owned by the District - on the grounds of the old Walter Reed.
Eight years ago, Bowser promised to re-imagine spaces like this around the District with retail, schools, affordable housing, new jobs and more. She says building spaces inclusive of residents with different incomes is a top priority.
“We believe strongly in a mixed-income strategy. So that people no matter what their incomes are, they have access to great amenities,” said Bowser. “The council just approved all of my requests for $450 million in more affordable housing. And we’re going to try new programs to make sure that we’re really increasing Black ownership in our city.”
Bowser believes the city was headed in the right direction until COVID struck.
“I know where we were when we went into COVID. A triple-A bond rating, balanced budgets, very robust economy, and had the lowest unemployment in Ward 7 and 8 since those numbers have been recorded,” Bowser said
The mayor says schools have made strides too.
“D.C. residents are confident again in their public schools. We had nine straight years of growth,” Bowser said. But she added, “it’s very important that we stay the course, help our kids catch up, focus on areas where we need some work.”
The mayor says schools will continue to be a priority if voters give her that opportunity.
She says during COVID, some parents did not put their children back in school, so the city is working to reclaim those students and help them catch up academically. And the mayor said a new school planned for Ward 7 is still on track.
Strong schools are not the only thing on the minds of D.C. voters. Public safety is an issue that has touched every Ward in the nation’s capital. Gun violence has spiked in the city. The mayor’s opponents say she hasn’t done enough to stem the tide.
But in our conversation, the mayor says the city will be investing in social support programs like violence interrupters, job opportunities, peace pop-ups and even more police to help pull the city out of the cycle.
When asked whether we could police our way out of this violence, the mayor admitted we cannot, but says “we can certainly need the police we need.”
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We took a golf cart around the grounds of the Parks at Walter Reed and traveled up Georgia Avenue to see what is next for a project in which she’s invested a good deal of capital. Along the way, residents stopped to ask for selfies and offered praise for the housing and for not forgetting seniors and retired members of the military.
“You can really see the housing coming out of the ground. And, you can see the town center taking shape, so that feels really good," she said.
Our tour ended with the mayor showing us the shell of a new Whole Foods store. Residents advocated for a quality grocery store option even before this project broke ground. It’s scheduled to open next year as part of the long-term plan for development.
Mayor Bowser hopes when she walks through the doors – she will be able to say “promises made, promises kept” – this time as only the second mayor of DC to serve out a third term.