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Board of Elections sets July 15 Ward 8 special election; ballots, vote centers, outreach outlined
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Summary
The DC Board of Elections told a May 13 roundtable it will hold the Ward 8 special election on July 15, 2025, with four early vote centers, 12 vote centers on election day, mail-ballot distribution beginning in June, and targeted outreach and worker recruitment underway.
The District of Columbia Board of Elections plans to hold the Ward 8 special election on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, with early voting Friday, July 11 through Monday, July 14, the board’s executive director said at a May 13 roundtable convened by the Committee on Executive Administration and Labor.
"BOE will mail every eligible voter a ballot for the Ward 8 special election," Monica Evans, executive director of the DC Board of Elections, told the council. The board said it tentatively will begin mailing ballots on Monday, June 9, and open four mail‑ballot drop boxes on Friday, June 13 at sites including Anacostia, Bellevue, Navy Yard and Congress Heights.
The board also gave a timeline for in‑person voting and staffing: it plans to operate four early vote centers July 11–14 and about 12 vote centers on election day, and expects to recruit 175–200 election workers to ultimately deploy roughly 145 workers at vote centers. Election worker training is scheduled to begin June 7.
Why it matters: the special election fills a Ward 8 Council vacancy and requires tailored outreach and logistics because only Ward 8 residents should be eligible to cast ballots in the contest. The board said it is preparing voter lists, programming poll‑book equipment to the ward, and conducting accessibility surveys of vote centers in June.
Supporting details and outreach: the Board of Elections’ Voter Education and Outreach team reported year‑round activity aimed at seniors, students and residents with limited English proficiency. The agency said it is coordinating with correctional facilities to ensure eligible Department of Corrections residents receive ballots and that Federal Bureau of Prisons outreach will occur by mail and email.
Local partners described steady collaboration. Diana Vega, civic engagement coordinator for DC Public Library, summarized years of joint voter registration drives and tabling at neighborhood branches, noting targeted events in Wards 7 and 8 in the run‑up to the special election. Donnie Russell of the University of the District of Columbia said UDC students participate as paid election workers through the BOE’s Adopt‑a‑Vote‑Center program and that multiple UDC campuses have served as vote centers in past cycles.
Board officials cautioned that advance planning and funding underlie the operations: "When we had the general election in November, that next day ... we're meeting with vendors because we're discussing upgrades to equipment," Evans said, and urged that large changes to who conducts elections require funding and dedicated staffing.
The board posted a draft special‑election calendar on its website and said it will continue outreach events in Ward 8, and will work with the Department of General Services to ensure vote centers are structurally accessible and ADA‑compliant. Mail‑ballot packets and election materials will be provided to facilities holding eligible voters.
