House passes D.C. statehood bill

Name: WORLD
Price range: $

Pro-statehood demonstrators near the U.S. Capitol on Monday Associated Press/Photo by J. Scott Applewhite

The U.S. House on Thursday approved a measure that would make Washington, D.C., the nation’s 51st state. The measure passed on a party-line vote. Democrats don’t have enough votes in the Senate to overcome a Republican filibuster, but even if they did, the bill would likely face legal challenges.

What is behind the push for statehood? Although the nation’s capital currently has its own local elected leaders, it is a federal district, so Congress has the power to veto or alter any local laws. Republicans, however, say the bill has nothing to do with giving the left-leaning city’s residents more of a say in their own affairs but is a power grab. The bill would give the new state one representative in the House and two senators, all of whom would most likely be Democrats.

Dig deeper: Read Anne K. Walter’s report about the statehood debate in The Stew.

Leigh Jones

Leigh is features editor for WORLD. She is a World Journalism Institute graduate who spent six years as a newspaper reporter in Texas before joining WORLD News Group. Leigh also co-wrote Infinite Monster: Courage, Hope, and Resurrection in the Face of One of America's Largest Hurricanes. She resides with her husband and daughter in Houston, Texas.