Whereas, the District of Columbia was established on the first Monday in December, 1800, by an Act of Congress as a seat for the national government under authority granted to the Congress by Article 1, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution, under which the Congress has the power to "exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District. . ."; and

Whereas, no provision for voting representation in the Federal Legislature for the residents of this Federal District was made in the Constitution or has been made at any time since; and

Whereas, throughout our nation’s history, citizens of the District of Columbia have given their undivided allegiance to the United States: fighting and dying in wars, paying their full measure of taxes, and providing labor and resources to the federal government; and

Whereas, we recognize that governments derive their "just powers from the consent of the governed" in order to secure the people’s rights "endowed by their Creator"; and

Whereas, the Social Principles contained in the United Methodist Book of Discipline state that the "form and the leaders of all governments should be determined by exercise of the right to vote guaranteed to all adult citizens," and further, that "the strength of a political system depends on the full and willing participation of its citizens"; and

Whereas, it has been the enduring tradition and history of the United Methodist Church, from the time of Wesley to the present day, to support the rights of the individual, to provide relief to the disenfranchised, and to champion the equality of all persons before God and before the law; and

Whereas, we are agreed that the continuing disenfranchisement of the citizens of the District of Columbia is an egregious moral wrong which must be rectified,

Therefore, be it resolved, that the General Conference of The United Methodist Church declares its full support, on moral grounds, for the provision of full democratic rights to the people of the District of Columbia. We affirm that District citizens are entitled to political rights equal to those of other Americans, including voting representation in both houses of Congress. We call on the President and the Congress of the United States of America to take action to provide congressional representation to the citizens of Washington, D.C., by whatever means they should find suitable and appropriate, and

Be it further resolved, that we call on all United Methodist congregations throughout the United States, to support the people of the District of Columbia in this cause. We call on the United States members of The United Methodist Church to call upon their elected representatives in Congress to demand democratic rights for the District of Columbia, and

Be it further resolved, that we call on other communities of faith, locally and throughout the nation, to join with us in advocating for the provision of these rights to Washington, D.C., so that at last the citizens of the District of Columbia are provided with the same democratic rights available to all other Americans.

ADOPTED 1980
REVISED AND ADOPTED 2000

See Social Principles, ¶ 162

Legislative Committee: Church and Society
Committee Recommendation: Concurrence as amended
Minority Report Information: No Minority Report Included
Plenary Action: The plenary session supported the committee's recommendation with a vote of 679 yes and 11 no
Date and Time of Vote: 05/10/00, 10:27 am

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