Sources & Citations At-Large Special Election · June 16, 2026

Where the data comes from

Every candidate position in the tool, traced to its source.
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This page documents the source behind every candidate position in the DC At-Large Council special election matching tool. For each of the ten questions, it shows where each candidate landed and the questionnaire, debate, or public record that position came from. Tap any source tag to open the original.

Positions are drawn from candidates’ own words: their written responses to local advocacy questionnaires, their campaign platforms, and the May 2026 candidate debate. Where a candidate has not taken a public position on a question, the tool says Not Stated rather than guessing.

The Sources
OppDC Opportunity DC

Candidate questionnaire / 2026 voter guide. Responses from all three candidates.

DCY DC YIMBYs

Questionnaire + endorsement (ranked Silverman #1, Crawford #2). All three responded.

DC4D DC for Democracy

Questionnaire (Silverman and Crawford; Patterson's response was filed for the Delegate race).

GGW Greater Greater Washington

Questionnaire + endorsement (endorsed Silverman). Crawford and Silverman responded.

W1D Ward 1 Democrats

Questionnaire + endorsement (endorsed Silverman). All three responded.

GLAA GLAA

Ratings + questionnaire (Crawford and Silverman).

C100 Committee of 100 on the Federal City

Land-use, planning, and preservation questionnaire. All three responded.

Debate Citycast DC candidate debate

May 11, 2026 candidate debate (all three), moderated by Michael Bryce Sadler.

SilvermanSite Silverman campaign — issues page

Candidate's published platform.

CrawfordSite Crawford campaign — issues page

Candidate's published platform.

PattersonSite Patterson campaign — issues page

Candidate's published platform.

Positions by Question
Q1 / Public Safety

The next councilmember should support continued use of curfew zones for large groups of youth as needed.

Elissa Silverman
Mixed
On Opportunity DC she answered yes but questioned its effectiveness; to DC for Democracy she was more skeptical, noting almost no one has been arrested under the curfew law and pivoting to late-night programming and job training. OppDC DC4D
Jacque D. Patterson
Support
Answered yes on Opportunity DC; the debate emphasizes youth investment but does not oppose curfew authority. OppDC Debate
Doni Crawford
Oppose
Left the curfew item unmarked on Opportunity DC with a research-skeptical comment; pivots to out-of-school-time programming in her DC for Democracy answer and the debate. OppDC DC4D Debate
Q2 / Public Safety

DC should return armed police officers (School Resource Officers) to all public high schools.

Elissa Silverman
Mixed
In the debate lightning round she was "not sure," saying she would look to evidence-based best practices. Debate
Jacque D. Patterson
Strongly Support
A clear yes in the debate, stressing how much was lost when SROs left schools; his Opportunity DC answer backs restoring SRO funding. Strongest pro-SRO position in the field. Debate OppDC
Doni Crawford
Oppose
In the debate lightning round: "No, not at the moment." Debate
Q3 / Housing & Land Use

It's more important to enable more homes — and more types of homes — in more of our neighborhoods, even if that results in pushback for changing a neighborhood's character.

Elissa Silverman
Strongly Support
On Greater Greater Washington’s binary she chose the pro-supply option — enable more homes even if it changes neighborhood character. DC YIMBYs ranked her #1 and noted she backs all nine of their Comprehensive Plan priorities. GGW DCY
Jacque D. Patterson
Oppose
On the Committee of 100 questionnaire, an explicit "No" to allowing apartment buildings by right in single-family zones, citing historic character and displacement of seniors; his YIMBYs answer and debate comments point the same way. His platform frames housing as "balanced." Most preservation-minded of the three. C100 DCY Debate PattersonSite
Doni Crawford
Mixed
A genuine middle: she chose preservation on Greater Greater Washington’s binary, but told the Committee of 100 that density and neighborhood character are not mutually exclusive and supports larger buildings in single-family zones where appropriate. DC YIMBYs ranked her #2. GGW C100 DCY CrawfordSite
Q4 / Housing & Land Use

The 2025 Council action narrowing TOPA (the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act) — including the exemption for buildings with 2–4 units and the 15-year exemption for new construction — should be reversed.

Elissa Silverman
Strongly Support
Told DC for Democracy she does not support the 2025 Council action repealing TOPA for two-to-four-unit buildings. A clean restoration position. DC4D
Jacque D. Patterson
Strongly Oppose
Lists "TOPA Reform and Modernization" as his #1 housing priority on the DC YIMBYs questionnaire, explicitly defending the new-construction and small-building exemptions. DCY
Doni Crawford
Oppose
Defends the small-landlord exemption on the merits to DC for Democracy, criticizing only the process of the 2025 change — not the narrowing itself. DC4D
Q5 / Housing & Land Use

The RFK Stadium site should be exempt from standard zoning to enable faster delivery of housing and development.

Elissa Silverman
Support
Yes on DC YIMBYs; in the debate and Committee of 100 she supports the development while committing to hold the Commanders to the deal’s timeline through oversight. DCY Debate C100
Jacque D. Patterson
Oppose
"No" on DC YIMBYs — wants community engagement and fast-tracked infrastructure rather than a blanket zoning exemption. On Committee of 100 he is focused on enforcing affordable-housing delivery; his objection is to the exemption mechanism, not the development. Only candidate opposing. DCY C100
Doni Crawford
Support
Yes on DC YIMBYs; she negotiated the deal as Committee Director and defends its affordable-housing and community-benefit commitments in the debate and Committee of 100. DCY Debate C100
Q6 / Housing & Land Use

To accelerate office-to-residential conversions downtown, DC should waive affordable-housing requirements if that's what it takes to get projects built.

Elissa Silverman
Oppose
In the debate she would subsidize conversions but expects some affordability in exchange for the public investment — opposes waiving the requirements. Debate
Jacque D. Patterson
Strongly Support
In the debate: "I would waive, yes." The only candidate willing to waive affordable-housing requirements to get conversions built. Debate
Doni Crawford
Oppose
In the debate: "I do not support waiving affordable housing requirements," proposing instead to fast-track projects that include 30–35% affordable units. Debate
Q7 / Transportation

DC should increase its funding for Metro (WMATA), even if that requires cuts elsewhere in the budget.

Elissa Silverman
Support
Endorsed funding Metro in the debate; on Committee of 100 she is unconditional — "We need to fund WMATA." Strongest of the three, with no regional-partner condition. Debate C100
Jacque D. Patterson
Oppose
In the debate: "No… we already pay more than our fair share." On Committee of 100 he favors regional compact funding but opposes DC paying more or cutting elsewhere — the framing of this question. Debate C100
Doni Crawford
Support
Supports a dedicated WMATA revenue stream, conditioned on Maryland and Virginia committing their share (debate and Committee of 100). Debate C100
Q8 / Economy & Safety Net

DC's Universal Paid Leave program is funded by a tax on employers, which the Council raised in 2024 (from 0.26% to 0.75% of wages). That increase should be rolled back.

Elissa Silverman
Strongly Support
Supports rolling back the increase on Opportunity DC, attaching her own 2024 op-ed against it; her platform frames cutting the rate as a signature win from her time as labor-committee chair. OppDC SilvermanSite
Jacque D. Patterson
Mixed
On Opportunity DC he supports lowering the tax but not eliminating it, and wants it kept tied to the paid-leave purpose. OppDC
Doni Crawford
Support
On Opportunity DC she supports rolling it back but flags the fiscal difficulty of doing so without offsetting revenue or spending cuts. OppDC
Q9 / Economy & Safety Net

DC should continue using local funds to provide TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) benefits to families who have reached the federal 60-month lifetime limit.

Elissa Silverman
Not Stated
She has not addressed the 60-month time limit directly in any source. Her safety-net record — paid-leave architect, support for nutrition assistance, committing to reverse the Alliance cuts — suggests she would oppose ending extended benefits, but the tool scores it Not Stated rather than inferring a position. SilvermanSite GLAA
Jacque D. Patterson
Strongly Oppose
In the debate and to Ward 1 Democrats he calls for ending DC’s practice of funding TANF past the federal 60-month limit — a position he himself calls "probably not popular." Debate W1D
Doni Crawford
Strongly Support
Opposes balancing the budget through health-and-human-services cuts (GLAA) and helped fund a guaranteed-income pilot for new and expectant mothers in Wards 5, 7, and 8. GLAA
Q10 / Education

The Council should reestablish a standalone Education Committee to strengthen democratic oversight of DC's public schools.

Elissa Silverman
Support
Told DC for Democracy the Council needs a standalone education committee, plus a larger elected Board of Education role including Chancellor hire/fire authority — without fully undoing mayoral control. DC4D
Jacque D. Patterson
Oppose
On Opportunity DC he backs the current mayoral-control system; as State Board of Education president his focus is on outcomes within the existing structure, echoed to Ward 1 Democrats and in the debate. OppDC W1D
Doni Crawford
Mixed
On Opportunity DC she takes no formal position on mayoral control; she validates the concern but defers structural change, focusing oversight on programs like community schools and language access. OppDC
Last updated: May 26, 2026 · Independent and unaffiliated · Back to the ranking tool
Sources are linked to the originating organization’s public page. Where an organization posts responses as a collection, the link points to that collection; the debate links to the full video.