Lewis George Names Team to Lead D.C. Mayoral Transition
The team will recommend candidates for deputy mayor, agency director and commissioner posts, and help shape the administration’s first 100 days. Lewis George also opened an online portal for people seeking jobs in city government.
Jennifer Levy, a campaign adviser and former first deputy attorney general in New York, will direct the transition. The co-chairs are former Obama administration appointee Aaron Jenkins; former D.C. deputy mayor Beatriz “BB” Otero; former Biden-Harris White House personnel director Gautam Raghavan; building trades council president Greg Akerman; and DC Action executive director Kimberly Perry.
Lewis George said the group is grounded in the District and knows how government works. She said it would help recruit people to carry out plans focused on public safety, affordability and accountability across the city’s eight wards.
The announcement followed Lewis George’s win in Tuesday’s mayoral election. She is set to take office on January 2, 2027, succeeding Muriel Bowser, who has pledged to support a smooth transfer of power.
Lewis George has campaigned on a universal childcare subsidy, building 72,000 homes over five years, improving food and rental assistance, speeding business permits and renewing the push for D.C. statehood. Those proposals face a projected $680 million budget gap, while the housing target would require construction to accelerate substantially compared with the previous decade.
Lewis George Builds a Team for an Affordability Agenda
Janeese Lewis George is moving to turn her affordability pledges into a governing plan, naming a transition director and five co-chairs after winning the D.C. mayoral election. The team will recommend senior hires and help establish priorities for the first 100 days.
The roster includes former government officials, a building trades leader and an advocacy nonprofit director. Jennifer Levy, a campaign adviser and former New York deputy attorney general, will direct the work. Lewis George said the team’s local roots and government experience would help recruit people ready to pursue safer, more affordable and accountable city services.
Her proposals include a universal childcare subsidy, 72,000 homes over five years, stronger food and rental assistance, faster business permitting and renewed efforts for statehood. The incoming administration has also opened an online portal for applicants interested in city jobs.
The agenda speaks directly to Lewis George’s message that government should work for residents and working people. But the projected $680 million budget gap poses a major financial challenge, and the housing target would require construction to rise sharply from the pace of the prior decade.
Lewis George takes office January 2, 2027, succeeding Muriel Bowser. The outgoing mayor has congratulated her and pledged to help ensure a smooth transition.
Lewis George’s Ambitious Plans Meet a $680 Million Gap
D.C. mayor-elect Janeese Lewis George has begun assembling an administration for a sweeping agenda, naming a transition director and five co-chairs on November 4. The team will recommend senior government hires and help set priorities for her first 100 days.
The stakes are not just who gets appointed, but whether the city can afford the promises Lewis George made during her campaign. They include a universal childcare subsidy, 72,000 new homes over five years and expanded food and rental assistance. The District faces a projected $680 million budget gap, and the housing goal would sharply accelerate construction compared with the previous decade.
Lewis George also wants to speed business permits and renew the push for D.C. statehood. Her transition roster includes former federal and local officials, a building trades council president and an advocacy nonprofit leader. Jennifer Levy, a campaign adviser and former New York deputy attorney general, will direct the effort.
Lewis George says the team will help deliver a safer, more affordable and accountable city. But ambitious commitments do not erase the financial constraints facing the incoming administration. How its leaders reconcile those promises with the projected shortfall will be central to the transition’s work.
Lewis George is scheduled to take office January 2, 2027, succeeding Muriel Bowser, who has promised to support a smooth transfer of power.
Reported by FOX 5 DC, The Washington Examiner, WTOP.
