(Headline USA) A former D.C. Council member is returning to his seat, five months after he was kicked out for his involvement in a federal bribery investigation.
Trayon White defeated three challengers in a special election Tuesday to fill the Ward 8 council seat that has been vacant since his expulsion in February.
BOR says it’s done counting for the night and this race is over. Trayon White is celebrating with supporters out on MLK Ave in Congress Heights. https://t.co/3v7infMvDR pic.twitter.com/gYwMpogfIL
— Alex Koma (@AlexKomaDC) July 16, 2025
White, 41, was arrested by the FBI last August. After an internal investigation, the remaining 12 D.C. Council members voted unanimously to oust him from the council. However, White was free to enter the special election because he had not been convicted on a felony.
He won reelection just a few months later in an indication of a scandal-proof popularity that echoes his political mentor: former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry.
His federal trial won’t start until January 2026, but preliminary evidence includes videos of White pocketing cash-stuffed envelopes from a city contractor, allegedly in return for securing lucrative city contracts.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press