The House of Representatives has passed legislation that could make Washington, D.C., the 51st state in the union, according to NPR. The House passed the bill in a 216-208 vote yesterday along party lines.
The legislation is known as the Washington, D.C., Admissions Act, or HR 51, according to Yahoo News. As a result, Washington D.C. would become a state called the Douglass Commonwealth, named after Black abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass.
Residents of Washington currently have no voting representation in Congress. The legislation would allow them to have two senators, one member of Congress, and a governor. However, some federal buildings and land would remain under federal jurisdiction. They include the White House, the National Mall, and the Capitol.
“This country was founded on the principles of no taxation without representation and consent of the governed,” Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District of Columbia’s non-voting delegate. “But D.C. residents are taxed without representation and cannot consent to the laws under which they as American citizens must live.”
The bill must now go to the Senate, which is split between Democrats and Republicans. Vice President Kamala Harris holds the tiebreaking vote.
If the legislation passes, Washington D.C. would become the first state that has a majority of Black residents. Republicans argue the largely Democratic effort is only an attempt for Democrats to gain more power in Washington.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., promises to introduce the legislation on the Senate floor.




