Park View, D.C.

Two weeks into the of nominating period for the Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner 2012 general election candidates still shows some Single Member Districts (SMD) wide open and others with races that may be hotly contested. With two and a half weeks to go for candidates to pick up their petitions and file, it is too early to tell who will end up on the ballot in any of the ANC 1A races. Still, I find it troubling that there are still three SMDs where no one has shown interest to date.

Below is the list of potential candidates as of July 19th according to the DC Board of Elections and Ethics.

All three of the currently open SMDs are along the western edge of Columbia Heights. I have faith that a candidate will come forward in SMD 1A01, a seat currently held by Commissioner Lisa Kralovic. SMDs 1A05 and 1A12 are more problematic.

Due to redistricting, residents in 1A05 may not realize that their current Commissioner, Laina Aquiline, no longer lives in that district. That means that someone new will need to step up.

Similarly, SMD 1A12 is a complete wildcard and could start 2013 open. It is a completely new SMD that was created by uniting some parts of ANC 1A and ANC 1B together as part of the redistricting process. As with SMD 1A05, residents living in the new 1A12 may not realize that those currently serving as their commissioner may live outside their district.

I’ll definitely revisit the ANC 1A races after the August 8th filing deadline. At that time I also hope to provide some information on the candidates that will be on the ballot.