Four Democratic Senators Introduce D.C. Statehood Bill

Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) may only be in office for another few weeks, but he announced yesterday that he and three colleagues were introducing a bill that would allow D.C. residents to vote on statehood—the first such measure to be considered by the body since 1993.

“It is long past time to give those American citizens who have chosen the District of Columbia as their home the voice they deserve in our democracy,” said Lieberman in a statement. “The United States is the only democracy in the world that denies voting representation to the people who live in its capital city. As I retire from the Senate after having had the great privilege of serving here for 24 years, securing full voting rights for the 600,000 disenfranchised people who live in the District is unfinished business, not just for me, but for the United States of America.”

D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton has introduced similar measures before the House of Representatives over the years; she last offered up the New Columbia Admission Act in January 2011, and it has since picked up 27 co-sponsors.

Of course, the timing makes the measure largely symbolic—and somewhat useless. Not only is Lieberman—long a champion of D.C.-related causes—leaving the Senate, but there's little chance that the bill will be fully considered in what's left of the lame-duck session. The office of Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) told the Post that he would reintroduce the bill during the next session, but didn't specify exactly when.

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