Elissa Silverman

Elissa Silverman (born 1972/1973) is an American politician and reporter from Washington, D.C.. She is an independent at-large member of the Council of the District of Columbia and previously held that office from 2015 to 2023. Before 2015, she was a journalist at The Washington Post and Washington City Paper covering D.C. politics, and a policy analyst at the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute. She first ran for Council in 2013 and lost before running again in 2014. She won in 2014 and was re-elected in November 2018 for a four-year term, but lost her re-election bid in 2022.

Early life and professional career Elissa Silverman was born to parents Jack and Ruth Silverman in Baltimore, Maryland, where she attended public school. She has worked as a reporter for The Washington Post and, earlier, the Washington City Paper where she wrote the Loose Lips column. She also helped the D.C. Public Trust in its attempt to prohibit direct corporate contributions in local politics. She attended the University of Maryland, pursuing a master's degree in urban studies and planning.

Political career

2013 election When At-large Council Member Phil Mendelson was elected council chairman in 2012, his former seat on the council was declared vacant. Silverman ran against incumbent Anita Bonds, and Board of Education member Patrick Mara. Silverman said she would not accept campaign contributions from corporations.

Silverman supported increasing funding to government programs that subsidize affordable housing, Silverman said it is a problem that a quarter of District students attend their zoned neighborhood schools, saying more governmental resources should improve schools.

Following a $440 million budget surplus in 2012, Bonds and Mara supported tax cuts, while Silverman said she would prioritize helping people in other ways before cutting taxes.

Silverman and her campaign tried to negotiate a deal with rival candidate Matthew Frumin, asking him to drop out of the election in exchange for her supporting him in a future election. Frumin declined the offer, saying he felt he still had a chance to win. former Council Member Sharon Ambrose, and former Council Member Kathy Patterson. She was also endorsed by the editorial board of the Washington City Paper, Democracy for America, and the Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 2. by a margin of 31% to 28%. Silverman publicly declared her candidacy for Council the next month.

Silverman emphasized accountability of elected officials, accountability of public schools, quality education, affordable housing, and good public transportation.

Silverman's candidacy was endorsed by Ward 8 Council Member Marion Barry, Ward 6 Council candidate Charles Allen, the D.C. Chapter of the National Organization for Women, D.C. Working Families, Jews United for Justice, and the D.C. Muslim Caucus, Metro Washington Council AFL–CIO, Service Employees International Union 32BJ and 1199, DC for Democracy, the Sierra Club, the DC Police Union, the United Food and Commercial Workers local, and the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 36. She was also endorsed by the editorial board of the Washington City Paper.

Silverman was elected to the at-large seat in the 2014 general election with 12% of the total votes. Allen and other opponents of the paid leave bill argued that it imposes a costly tax on DC businesses and that the benefits will primarily accrue to residents of Maryland and Virginia who commute into the city. Allen was disqualified from the 2018 ballot as a result of signature fraud on her nominating petitions. Dionne Reeder, a candidate backed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, entered the race to replace Silverman, though was not successful in the November 2018 general election.

2022 election Silverman lost her re-election bid in November 2022 to Anita Bonds and Kenyan McDuffie, where two seats were up for election.

2026 election After McDuffie announced in January 2026 he would resign his seat to run for mayor, Silverman launched a bid for the June special and November regular elections for her former seat. Multiple local unions, including the Metropolitan Washington Council AFL-CIO and the Washington Teachers Union, endorsed Silverman's return bid. Silverman won the special election. She took office after the Board of Elections certified the results on July 17.

Positions

Silverman was the lead champion for D.C.’s paid family leave program. The program passed in 2016.

In 2016, Silverman introduced legislation to limit public spending on a proposed practice facility for the Washington Wizards. The law would cap public expenditures at $50 million and hold Ted Leonsis's company, which owns the team, responsible for any cost overruns.

Committees Silverman was appointed to the following committees for Council Period 21 (January 2015 to December 2016). Committee on Business, Consumer and Regulatory Affairs Committee on Housing and Community Development Committee on Finance and Revenue

Personal life Silverman lives in Capitol Hill. She currently serves as a board member of Seabury Resources for Aging, which provides D.C. seniors and their families housing and other supportive resources.

2014

2018

2022

2026