Despite scandal and a looming corruption trial, Trayon White wins vote to return to the DC Council
July 15, 2025
A former Washington, D.C., Council member is returning to his seat, five months after he was kicked out for his involvement in a federal bribery investigation. Trayon White defeated three challengers in a special election Tuesday to fill the Ward 8 council seat that has been vacant since his expulsion in February. White, 41, was arrested by the FBI last August. After an internal investigation, the remaining 12 D.C. Council members voted unanimously to oust him from the council. However, White was free to enter the special election because he had not been convicted of a felony. He won reelection just a few months later in an indication of a scandal-proof popularity that echoes his political mentor: former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry.
