Sekou Biddle Endorsements Show Breadth of Support

I'd like to say that when I endorsed Sekou Biddle on February 2 for an At Large seat on the DC Council, I started a trend. Since that date, Biddle has collected a list of endorsements that spans the DC political spectrum. However, that trend had already been started weeks earlier when Bryan Weaver had offered his endorsement for Biddle. While I can't lay claim to being a trend-setter, I can brag about having been correct in at least one respect. I described Biddle as the one candidate capable of uniting disparate factions of District residents. The subsequent endorsements have certainly borne that out.

The breadth of Biddle's support is most evident in his newspaper endorsements. The establishment Washington Post, the alternative Washington City Paper, and the staid Current Newspapers have all given Biddle the nod. Harry Jaffe of the Washington Examiner has also offered Biddle his endorsement. Jaffe writes, "He's smart, daring, energetic and can start changing the game."

Not only has Biddle been endorsed by the aforementioned Bryan Weaver -- called an "unbending liberal" by the Washington Post -- and myself (aspiring to be called an unbending liberal by the Washington Post), but DC Council Member David Catania, an independent, and Patrick Mara -- a Republican who actually ran against Biddle last year. As Mara said in his endorsement, "we all need to come together as residents and voters if we are going to clean up our Council and elect honest leaders." This is true whether we are on the left, right, or center of DC politics.

In addition, Biddle has been endorsed by the DC Chapters of the Sierra Club and the National Organization for Women. Biddle was rated highest among At Large candidates by the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance (GLAA) and was the highest vote-getter (55 percent) during the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club's endorsement meeting.

We currently have a council that was forced to pass a rule prohibiting members from swearing at each other. One member resigned in disgrace and is heading for jail. The Chairman is under federal investigation. Member after member is dogged by ethics issues. Biddle, as Jaffe says, will be a game changer. He is an unifying candidate that is committed to reforming ethics, improving education, and ending the "pay for play" culture that currently exists in the Wilson Building.