Trial date set for D.C. Council member Trayon White’s trial on federal bribery charges

A federal judge said Wednesday that D.C. Council member Trayon White’s trial on bribery charges will begin Jan. 12, 2026.

U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras issued the ruling in the embattled Ward 8 Democrat’s first court appearance since he won re-election last week.

Mr. White suggested Wednesday that he be allowed to serve on the council until a jury delivers a verdict in the trial, where he’s accused of taking $156,000 in bribes in exchange for influencing government contracts.

An independent D.C. Council probe of the matter is expected to conclude next month. If the investigation finds he was involved in the alleged bribery, Mr. White could be expelled long before he’s judged by 12 of his peers in court.

“I will expect the council to give me the same, and the people of Ward 8, the same justice that we allow the federal government to give us, and that’s this — the vote of the people,” Mr. White told reporters outside the federal courthouse. “Over 20,000 people voted for me to be the council member last week in Ward 8, and so we are entitled to have our rights heard as well.”

He won 84% of the vote against Republican challenger Nate Derenge.

Mr. White also said he’s planning to meet with community leaders “to ensure that we’re moving Ward 8 forward.” He then walked off without answering questions.

Wednesday’s status hearing was Mr. White’s first with his federal public defenders, who were swapped in after financial trouble contributed to the dismissal of his previous defense team.

The public defenders told Judge Contreras that they couldn’t make the planned July 2025 trial date work and had to prioritize cases with defendants held in prison throughout the fall.

Mr. White pleaded not guilty to the charges in September.

Court documents appear to include photos of Mr. White, 40, pocketing cash-stuffed envelopes from an FBI informant on multiple occasions last summer.

The filing also includes audio recordings that allegedly capture the lawmaker discussing other potential fraud schemes with the informant.

The bribery case dampened his reelection campaign, as it took in only $2,000 in October — all of which came from Mr. White. He spent $15,000 of his own money on the campaign that’s $45,000 in debt. Roughly $30,000 of that is owed to vendors who helped Mr. White on the trail.

The White campaign could repay those vendors; otherwise, the lawmaker would have to come up with the cash.

Mr. White also has $80,000 in unpaid campaign debt from his failed 2022 mayoral bid and his 2020 reelection campaign. It’s unclear if he’s paid down any of that balance.

The council member’s pitch to remain on the council — and continue to collect his $167,000 annual salary as a member of the legislative body — would likely help his financial situation.

The private law firm hired to investigate Mr. White is planning to share its findings with the D.C. Council in December.

Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, at-large Democrat, said this fall that any legislative action taken to remove Mr. White would not take place until early next year.

Mr. White previously was stripped of his leadership position as the head of the Committee on Recreation, Libraries and Youth Affairs.