Washington, D.C
The most-searched issues by DC voters ahead of the 2024 election – Washington Examiner
Washington, D.C., has had some of the most reliably blue voters in the nation since its allowance of three Electoral College votes in 1961. Yet, the Washington Examiner’s swing-state project covers the surrounding local area as well as competitive states, taking into account what voters in this region are concerned about.
The Washington Examiner is following the key issues voters care about as they prepare to vote for the next president of the United States. The specific issues being tracked are Social Security, crime, abortion, the economy, and immigration.
The issues were chosen with the help of the Associated Press issues tracker. The Washington Examiner subsequently compared five of the key issues in Google Trends on a state-by-state basis, revealing which topics are most important to voters in swing contests, as well as the local contests of Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.
Here, you can track how important these various concerns are to the voters in the district on a rolling 30-day basis.
Crime
Crime was the top issue for district voters. As of October, crime rates are down by 17% compared to 2023, according to reports from the Metropolitan Police Department. There have been 144 homicides in Washington this year, which is a 33% decrease from October 2023.
Assault with a dangerous weapon is down by 27%, and robbery is down by 39%. Violent crime in total is down by 35%, and motor vehicle theft dropped by 31%.
This is a steep change from last year, though, which saw a general increase in crime throughout the district.
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Social Security
Social Security came in second place for voters. In the district, Social Security benefits are not taxed — even Social Security income that is taxed at the federal level is not taxed in Washington.
It was reported in Sept. 2024 that the Social Security Administration in Washington was experiencing IT issues both online and in person, restricting people’s access to the administration. The district has also added a warning on its government website about Social Security scams.
In May 2024, the Ways and Means Committee heard comments from the SSA’s commissioner, Martin O’Malley, about reforms to protect seniors and taxpayers. Many problems were highlighted, including improper payments from the SSA, the disability application backlog of over 1 million, and customer service phone calls that leave residents waiting for hours without getting issues resolved.
With steps being taken toward amending the SSA for the betterment of beneficiaries, it’s now a waiting game to see when changes will be made.
Abortion
Abortion ranked third for voters in the district despite the procedure being protected at every stage of pregnancy for both residents and visitors. Minors do not need parental notice or permission to receive an abortion, and there is no mandatory waiting period or counseling sessions.
Economy
Worries over the economy came in second-to-last for voters in the district. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Economic Analysis, the district’s gross domestic production has seen limited growth since 2022. Its GDP rate of 2.4% amounted to $179.2 billion in goods and services as of November 2023. The growth rate places the district 49th in the nation for economic growth.
Also in November 2023, Washington’s unemployment rate was higher than the national average, coming it at 5% and placing it as the second-highest unemployment rate in the country.
The local economy accounts for 0.65% of the nation’s economy, and unsurprisingly, the district’s highest-grossing industry was government enterprises, amounting to $55.347 billion, followed by professional, scientific, and technical services, valuing at $39.06 billion. Educational services saw 5.1% growth, and real estate grew by 16.9%.
Immigration
Immigration ranks last for voters. With 1 in 7 district residents being immigrants themselves and 1 in 9 having at least one immigrant parent, it’s an unsurprising ranking.
Statistics from the American Immigration Council show that of the 98,500 immigrants in the district, 71,700 are in the workforce, accounting for 17.9% of it. The STEM industry consists of 21.1% immigrant workers, preceded only by the finance industry with 21.6%. There are 11,457 international students studying in Washington, D.C., with an economic contribution of $525.5 million.
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As of 2018, immigrants almost outpace U.S.-born district residents in higher education as 58% of immigrants hold a college or higher degree and 61% of U.S.-born adults hold degrees. Immigrants also make up 30% of entrepreneurs, seeing $172.4 million in business income. As of 2022, immigrants paid $2.2 billion in taxes and had just under $5 billion in spending power.
Of all the immigrants in the district, 52.5% are naturalized, 18,300 are eligible for naturalization, and 13.3% are undocumented.
Washington, D.C
The director of the Congressional Budget Office—known for its gloomy national debt data—is very optimistic that a crisis will be avoided entirely | Fortune
Dr Phillip Swagel is an optimist, both by nature and when he looks at the U.S. economy.
This fact is perhaps at odds with what one might assume: Swagel is the director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the nonpartisan agency that offers independent budgetary and economic analysis to Congress.
Very often—an inevitable occupational hazard—the subject of national debt and the interest the U.S. Treasury pays to maintain is its central focus. The numbers are eye-watering: Public debt stands at more than $39 trillion. The interest expense on that borrowing now exceeds $1 trillion a year. Indeed, the latest budget update from the CBO highlights that the government—according to preliminary estimates—paid out nearly $530 billion between October 2025, when the fiscal year starts, and March 2026. This equates to more than $88 billion in interest payments a month, or more than $22 billion a week.
The CBO’s figures are routinely cited by policymakers, think tanks, and lobbyists as alarming evidence that the U.S. needs to find a more sustainable fiscal path or risk dire straits.
Swagel doesn’t subscribe to the notion that the U.S. will face a crisis of its own making. His justification is simple: He was at the Treasury during the 2008 financial crisis, and joined the CBO months before the COVID pandemic began. He has watched as the U.S. economy, seemingly against all odds, has clawed its way out of economic crises before.
That’s not to say Swagel isn’t a staunch advocate of setting the U.S. on a more sustainable fiscal path—rather, he trusts the people in power to do so when the time comes.
Why the optimism?
Among those concerned about national debt are notable names: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is also worried about federal spending and has endorsed a plan floated by Berkshire Hathaway founder Warren Buffett that would render members of Congress ineligible for reelection if they allow deficits to exceed 3% of GDP.
On the other hand, optimistic economists suggest that, despite the value of the debt, it’s not actually an issue: the bond market is holding steady, indicating a reliable market of buyers. Likewise, the U.S.’s own central bank buys huge swaths of the debt, meaning, in the simplest of layman’s terms, the economy can essentially print its own money. There are holes in this argument, not least the fact that Fed chairman nominee Kevin Warsh has suggested he would like to reduce the Fed’s balance sheet and may therefore be less inclined to finance borrowing.
Swagel’s positive outlook doesn’t rely on the argument that a crisis hasn’t happened yet, so therefore it never will: “[My optimism] is rooted in my experience,” Swagel tells Fortune in an exclusive interview in Washington D.C. “First being at Treasury during the financial crisis and seeing very difficult times and the country coming together with an effective response—not saying it’s perfect, lots of controversy—but it was effective.”
“The second thing is policymakers are smart, they’re thoughtful. Interacting with members of Congress makes me optimistic. I know you read about all the squabbles … I’m completely aware of this, but the policymakers that are thinking about these things are thoughtful and effective. Not necessarily always effective at passing legislation, but that’s part of our political system, it was set up to make it difficult ot pass legislation.”
Decisions on the horizon
Swagel’s optimism that Congress will be pushed into action will be tested sooner rather than later, likely at some point in the next six years, he told Fortune. This is partly due to the fact that, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) both Social Security and Medicare will become insolvent within that time period.
“Making progress to address the fiscal trajectory would be a positive for the U.S. economy,” Swagel said. “Credible steps would lead to lower interest rates that would make the subsequent adjustment easier, there is a reward to virtue. It’s a positive thing, we can’t go on [with] the scolding narrative. My sense is that members of Congress understand the fiscal situation, it’s not that everyone single one has looked at our one-pager of numbers and understands the debt to the third decimal point, but they understand something needs to be done.”
“It doesn’t have to be done immediately, but at some point reasonably soon.”
Swagel is of the opinion that bond investors haven’t increased risk premiums not because they’re not worried about a fiscal crisis, but because they have priced in preventative action from Congress—in his mind “a vote of confidence that my optimism is not misplaced.”
“As a country, we face up to these problems. It’s not happening now, I’m not sure it’s going to happen in the rest of this year or even the next year, or the next two years. But we will face up to it, and the market in some sense expects us to, because otherwise interest rates would be higher,” he explained.
The Cheesecake Factory
The role of the CBO, to some extent, is to provide policymakers with their options if and when they do choose to take action on federal deficits. It’s a menu not unlike the Cheesecake Factory, Swagel says: Large, inclusive of a range of modifications and options, and delivered without judgement.
“Right now it’s maybe a pick three, and you’re looking at a six or seven course menu,” joked Caleb Quakenbush, director of fiscal policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, in an interview with Fortune. “The longer you delay, the more you’re gonna have to add to your tab, and those options become more expensive.”
Indeed, economists and analysts aren’t necessarily worried about the absolute level of government debt, rather the debt-to-GDP ratio. Depending on whom you ask, the debt-to-GDP ratio stands at around 122% of GDP at present. This measure demonstrates an economy’s spending versus its growth, and the risk associated with lending to a nation that isn’t growing fast enough to handle its spending. To rebalance that ratio, an economy could either cut spending or increase growth—the latter being by far the less painful option.
The growth option is becoming less feasible, Michael Peterson, CEO of fiscal think tank the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, told Fortune in an exclusive interview: “I think it requires government action because we’ve waited so long. We’ve added so many trillions, and the current deficit is so big at 6% that the level of growth you would need really exceeds what is feasible.
“Growth needs to be a part of it, but it’s sort of a vicious cycle. The longer we delay, the more debt we have, the slower growth is going to be. The more we get this under control, I think the greater optimism there is, interest rates go down, more growth comes from that. It’s sort of a virtuous or vicious cycle depending on your policy response.”
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Seventy-two veterans took a trip Saturday to our nation’s capital to visit memorials honoring their service in the armed forces.
This year marks the 12th trip to Washington, D.C. for Honor Flight Tallahassee.
Early Saturday morning, veterans and their guardians met to take a charter flight up to D.C.
Throughout the day, veterans were taken to the World War II memorial, as well as the Korean and Vietnam War memorials. The veterans also visited Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
More Tallahassee news:
The day ended with a wonderful welcome home celebration.
Our Jacob Murphey, Julia Miller, Taylor Viles, and Grace Temple accompanied the veterans, capturing moments from throughout the day.
The team will have live coverage from Washington, D.C. on Monday to share more from the day’s events.
We will continue to have coverage throughout the month of May, leading up to our Honor Flight special on Memorial Day.
To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Nextdoor and X (Twitter).
Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here. Please include the article’s headline in your message.
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Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.
4 things to know about the weather:
- Chances of rain in the morning
- Gusty Sunday
- Chilly Monday
- Temps will rise again through the work week
Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.
After a nice and warm Saturday, changes arrive for part two of the weekend.
The first half of your Sunday will have a chance for showers. Winds will pick up with our next system and are expected to gust to about 20-30 mph. Cooler air will settle in, and lows Sunday night fall into the 40s.
Highs temps Monday will reach only into the mid to upper 50s.
However, temperatures will rise through the week, so you won’t need your jackets every day.
QuickCast
SUNDAY:
Showers, then partly cloudy
Wind: NW 10-15 mph
Gusts @ 30 mph
HIGH: Lower 60s
MONDAY:
Partly cloudy
Wind: NW 10-15 mph
Gusts @ 25 mph
HIGH: Upper 50s
Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.
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