Washington, D.C, Mayor Muriel Bowser will not seek re-election to a fourth term, she told NBC-4 Washington in an interview that aired Tuesday.
She called the decision “the hardest thing I’ve had to do” and added she believes she’s “accomplished the things I set out to do” as mayor.
“It’s time for me to pass the baton on to the next set of leaders who are gonna take our city to the next level,” she said.
“It has been the honor of my life to be your Mayor. Together, we have built a legacy of success of which I am intensely proud,” Bowser said in a post on X.
Bowser’s recent months have been centered on a delicate dance with President Donald Trump over the federal law enforcement presence in the city and the slew of federal job cuts that have had a unique impact on the region, as well as negotiating a delicate deal to bring the Washington Commanders NFL franchise’s home field back into the district.
The mayor’s public relationship with the president was far different during his first term, when Bowser designated a two-block stretch outside the White House as Black Lives Matter Plaza, complete with a ground mural, a move that drew the ire of Republicans. This year, after a push from a Republican congressman to jeopardize city funding over the plaza, Bowser’s office removed it, and she said in a statement that the city’s top concern needs to be the “devastating impacts of the federal jobs cuts.”
The mayor has also tried to walk a careful line in cooperating with the Trump administration in its decision to surge federal troops to the city in the name of fighting violent crime and enforcing immigration laws, all while staving off repeated GOP threats to repeal the city’s home rule — a balancing act that has earned her both praise and criticism.
Asked about her posture toward Trump and the city’s future without her at the helm managing that relationship, Bowser said that she’s “putting the district in the best possible place,” and argued that the political pressures on the president may be different in the future than they were at the beginning of his term.
Bowser has also been focused in recent years both on shepherding the city out of the pandemic, which dealt myriad blows to the city’s economy and left many downtown businesses hollowed out as more and more residents worked from home. In her final year, Bowser said she’ll focus on growing the economy.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
