Janeese Lewis George holds a narrow lead over Kenyan McDuffie in Washington, D.C.’s crowded Democratic mayoral primary, according to a new poll released just weeks before the election.A City Cast DC survey found Lewis George leading McDuffie 39% to 34% among Democratic voters, while no other candidate in the seven-person field surpassed 7% support. Nearly a quarter of voters remain undecided.The June 16 race marks the district’s first open mayoral contest in more than a decade. Current Mayor Muriel Bowser is set to leave office when her fourth term ends in January 2027.
The matchup has emerged as a battle between competing visions for the district’s Democratic Party. Lewis George has embraced a more progressive, left-wing message and drawn comparisons to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, while McDuffie has cast himself as a centrist Democrat closely aligned with Bowser.
But the poll suggests the race could tighten considerably once ranked choice voting comes into play.
McDuffie holds a substantial edge in second-choice support among voters backing other candidates, leading Lewis George 27% to 15%.
Under the district’s ranked choice system, voters’ backup selections are redistributed if no candidate wins an outright majority in the first round.
