Where we are in the world
Washington DC is the seat of the US Government and has a population of more than 600,000 though its residents do not get a voice in Congress – a commonly-seen phrase on car license plates from Washington DC is “Taxation Without Representation”. Originally, the federal district was created to be separate from a state (carved out from the surrounding Maryland state) in order to prevent conflicts of interest in governing. The situation of the country is much different than it was when the District of Columbia was first created back in the late 1700s and recent calls for a 51st State to be created have been renewed.
For other maps on borders, check out Nahwa & Madha Enclaves and another post on a planned capital City – Naypyidaw, Myanmar!
See the interactive Google Map at the bottom of the post!
Three key facts about this map
The 51st State would exclude a portion of the city with federal buildings
Proposals of creating a 51st state from Washington DC would exclude a section noted as a “federal enclave”. This enclave is technically a Constitutional requirement and would ensure that the Federal Government maintains control over important key buildings to the government, including the White House, Capitol Building, many cabinet buildings (Treasury, Labor, Education, Health & Human Services, Interior, etc.), and many of the key monuments. The only residence in the proposed Federal Enclave would be the White House – all other residents of Washington DC would be outside the boundaries in the newly-formed 51st state.
The citizens of Washington DC overwhelmingly supported statehood
In a 2016 referendum in Washington DC, 86% of residents supported statehood. Despite this clear mandate, the only legal way to create a state would be for a constitutional amendment which requires majority support of both houses of Congress. The Republican Party generally opposes the calls for DC statehood because it would add seats to Congress that would very-likely lean Democrat. Because of the thresholds in the legislature needed to pass a constitutional amendment, the push for statehood will likely be stalled for the foreseeable future.
Washington DC would be the 3rd smallest state by population
Common perceptions of Washington DC are that “the population is transient” and “its too small to be considered a state”. Despite these common perceptions, Washington DC has more than 600,000 full-time residents (and more than 700,000 when including seasonal residents) – this puts the population higher and on-par with other states in the country (as of July 2022):
- 50th – Wyoming, with a population of 581,381
- 49th – Vermont, with a population of 647,064
- Potential 51st State – Washington DC, with a population of 671,803
- 48th – Alaska, with a population of 733,583
- 47th – North Dakota, with a population of 779,261
There is precedent to admit new states – when Hawaii was first admitted as a state in 1959, the population was about 630,000 residents (it has since grown to ~1.2mn).
Additional links and sources
- Official website for DC statehood (link)
- Opinion on why DC should become the 51st state (link, published in 2021)
- Article on the varied opinions for/against DC statehood (link, pubished in 2022)
Do you think Washington DC should become the 51st State?
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