Elected city officials will be sworn into office Friday, including the District’s new mayor, Muriel Bowser, three new D.C. Council members and the city’s first elected attorney general.
The swearing in ceremony will take place beginning at 9:30 a.m. at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
Mayor-elect Muriel Bowser will take her oath of office as the seventh elected mayor of the District shortly before noon. She will be sworn into office by D.C. Court Chief Judge Eric T. Washington. Mayor Vincent C. Gray will be on hand to pass the seal to Ms. Bowser.
Four incumbent and three new D.C. Council members will also be sworn in.
Newcomers Brianne Nadeau, Charles Allen, and Elissa Silverman are replacing outgoing council members Jim Graham, Tommy Wells, and David Catania respectively. Ms. Nadeau will represent Ward 1, Mr. Allen will represent Ward 6, and Ms. Silverman will be an at-large council member.
Council chairman Phil Mendelson and members Kenyan McDuffie, Ward 5 Democrat; Mary Cheh, Ward 3 Democrat; and Anita Bonds, at-large Democrat, were all re-elected and will also be sworn back into office.
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Several members of the newly sworn-in council will host open houses at their offices at the Wilson Building from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Friday, including Mr. McDuffie, Ms. Silverman and Mr. Allen.
Friday’s events also mark the first time an elected attorney general will take office. Karl Racine won the first ever election for the post after a highly contentious legal battle left many questioning if the election would even be held in 2014.
In addition to the swearing-in events, Ms. Bowser will also take part in and an inauguration interfaith service at First Congregational United Church of Christ in Northwest at 8 a.m. Friday.
She also participated in a Thursday morning “Fresh Start 5K Run-Walk” meant to encourage D.C. residents “to have a commitment to wellness” in 2015.
The festivities will continue into Friday evening with Ms. Bowser’s D.C. Proud Inaugural Ball at 7 p.m. at the convention center.
Ms. Bowser’s inaugural committee had raised more than $800,000 for the festivities as of Dec. 10, taking in the maximum $10,000 contribution from numerous lobbyists and developers. The transition hasn’t specified how much will be spent on the celebrations.
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Pop singer-songwriter Sheila E. will headline the inaugural ball.
• This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Andrea Noble can be reached at anoble@washingtontimes.com.
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