Meet Edward
Edward Daniels has spent the last eight years doing the least glamorous, unpaid job in DC government - on purpose.
As one of the city’s most experienced Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners (ANCs), he has logged countless hours negotiating development deals, acquiring (actual) affordable housing, securing community benefits, and holding some of the District’s most dysfunctional agencies accountable even when Councilmembers who oversee them turn a blind eye.
Daniels has served as Chairperson of ANC 6D and ANC 6/8F, representing some of the District’s most densely populated and fastest growing neighborhoods including his home of Navy Yard (named one of the 12 coolest neighborhoods around the world by Forbes Magazine), Buzzard Point, Southwest, and The Wharf.
Working within the bounds of two different Business Improvement Districts, two major sports stadiums (Nationals Park and Audi Field), and in tandem with two Councilmembers across two Wards (being one of the city’s few hybrid ANCs), he has gone toe-to-toe with slumlords, helped residents cut through unnecessary red tape within a government that too-often feels impossible to navigate, and called out dysfunctional city agencies (spotlight on you DDOT) who continue to generate far more problems than they solve, all the while holding on to inflated tax payer-supported salaries.
In his own words..
Key Priorities
Public safety and accountability are foundational to improving quality of life in any major city, because residents can only feel peace of mind when they feel secure in their homes, streets, and communities.
Effective safety efforts require an honest understanding of the socio-economic conditions—such as poverty, housing instability, and lack of opportunity—that can contribute to crime, so policies address root causes rather than just symptoms.
At the same time, acknowledging these factors must never excuse criminal behavior; accountability remains essential to protecting victims, maintaining trust in institutions, and upholding the rule of law. When cities balance compassion with responsibility, they create safer environments and more equitable outcomes for everyone.
I have to double-down on this: socio-economic conditions such as poverty, housing instability, and lack of opportunity can never excuse criminal behavior.
Over the past five years, my community has unfortunately been terrorized by numerous incidents of youth crime. We experienced an uptick of car jackings during and immediately following the pandemic, including the 2021 carjacking and death of Mohammad Anwar by a 13 and 15-year-old.
During the Christmas holiday of that very year, I witnessed an elderly ride-share driver being beaten and carjacked just out front of my apartment along New Jersey Avenue SE. The young man responsible for this incident was released and arrested just one week later, on Half Street SE, this time carrying a loaded weapon as he robbed someone. When a detective arrived to my lobby to interview me about the carjacking incident, I asked him how it was possible that this same person was back out on our streets, with a gun, just a week later. His response: “Ask your Councilmember!”
Within the last year, our community has experienced several so-called teen takeovers.
It happened once. Then, again and again and again.
I issued a lengthy statement regarding juvenile crime and accountability on the very night that Councilmember Allen attended our ANC meeting. During the meeting, residents voiced their frustration and concerns. As the Councilmember spoke, a young man was shot and later died just feet away from our meeting.
We must hold any criminal activity in our city accountable to the law, whether conducted by a juvenile or elected official, and we must create laws that offer penalties for crime and not excuse after excuse for behavior. I am a firm believer in meeting anyone where they are and offering as many resources as possible to alleviate whatever situation they may find themselves in. However, I am constantly reminded of President Obama’s 2017 farewell address, where he noted the importance of respecting and enforcing the rule of law. My belief is that those who choose not to participate in the basic rules of a society and are determined to create fear and chaos must be held accountable.
With years of hands-on experience negotiating affordable housing deals in one of the fastest-developing neighborhoods in the country, I have worked at the intersection of growth, equity, and community stability. I understand how market pressures, zoning decisions, and financing structures determine who gets to remain in a neighborhood—and who is displaced. My goal is to advance legislation that integrates inclusive, affordable housing into every zoning category across the city by requiring affordability in all new residential development, regardless of location.
I have testified before the Zoning Commission on multiple occasions during the Design Review process. While members of the public are permitted to comment on unit sizes, brickwork, amenities, and other aesthetic features, we are prohibited from addressing the absence of affordable housing because current zoning regulations do not treat it as a deficiency in new development. That framework must change. Affordability cannot remain siloed or optional; it must be embedded in every new project from the outset.
We must also confront the role luxury amenities play in driving up rents across the city. I currently represent, and have long served, residents in the Navy Yard, Buzzard Point, Southwest, and Wharf neighborhoods, where residential developments have included private bowling alleys, indoor basketball courts, tennis facilities, and Parisian-style spas. Most residents would readily trade these amenities for $500–$1,000 in monthly rent savings if given the choice—yet zoning and development practices often lock these costs in from the start.
By prioritizing durable design, safety, and long-term livability, while limiting unnecessary luxury amenities that inflate costs, we can reduce rents without sacrificing quality. This approach allows new housing to serve working families, seniors, and longtime residents, ensuring growth that is both inclusive and sustainable.
Home Rule is beyond essential for our city, especially as federal threats to local governance intensify and the current administration continues to unlawfully impose itself on major cities. With more than 712,000 residents, a population greater than Wyoming or Vermont, D.C. functions like a state in every meaningful way, yet its residents are denied full self-determination.
District residents pay more federal taxes per capita than any other state and contribute more total federal taxes than 21 states but still must seek congressional approval to spend our own locally raised dollars. DC bears the responsibilities of a state without the rights, making home rule not just a matter of fairness, but of democratic legitimacy and basic self-governance.
I am grateful for the tremendous work that Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton has put in for our city for many years and look forward to working with our new Congressperson to get Home Rule over the finish line within the next year.
Through my years serving as an ANC, working within District government, and engaging with it as both a resident and business owner, I have observed a consistent reluctance within government systems to acknowledge fault when processes fail.
Many residents have sought my guidance in navigating local government, and while I am deeply familiar with its structure and operations, there have been numerous instances where even experienced advocates are impeded by rigid bureaucracy and an unwillingness to adjust ineffective processes.
When systems are designed or allowed to fail, meaningful solutions require accountability and a willingness to adapt.
As a new member of the Council, I will lead with honesty, directness, and accountability, and ensure that the voices of the people who elected me are reflected in every decision that I make.
Basic human rights are non-negotiable, and I’m proud to live in a city that largely shares that conviction. That means defending a woman’s right to choose, protecting immigrants who contribute to our communities, and standing unequivocally for LGBTQ+ people to live openly and safely.
It means ensuring low-income residents have real access to resources, recognizing housing as a human right – not a privilege reserved for the one percent of our neighbors who can afford a $6000 per month one-bedroom—and treating medical care as essential, not optional.
I'll always remember my first Pride, seeing the 17th Street High Heel Race headline the evening news, discovering our local government's many cultural offices, and the support offered to our local arts and humanities ecosystem. It struck me that such diversity is normal here…normal, and I thought to myself: “I really like this place!”
I will always fight for the best of what this city can be- a city that celebrates diversity, humanity, inclusion, dignity, and equity!
I came to public service as an entrepreneur with a background in the arts, events, and entertainment-industries where urgency, coordination, and execution aren’t optional. Planning only matters if it leads to activation. While checks and balances are essential in government, the pace and resolve required to solve problems too often feel intolerable and, at times, entirely absent.
Government tends to move swiftly only when its in crisis mode (during the pandemic, for example), or when external pressure forces action, such as when our city miraculously found and rapidly housed our unhoused neighbors due to a federal administration mandate.
I loathe unnecessary bureaucracy. Over the past eight years as a Commissioner, I’ve focused on igniting action and moving projects across the finish line in as few steps as possible, without compromising integrity, transparency, or public trust.
Efficiency isn’t about cutting corners; it’s about respecting time, resources, and the urgency of the people we serve and is a critical component of my style of work.
What? The 2025 word of the year. Why? No one knows.
Events
Contact Team Edward
EDWARD DANIELS
Candidate for DC COUNCIL AT-LARGE
1000 1st Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
team@edwarddanielsatlarge.com
Ethan Sonneborn, Campaign Manager
manager@edwarddanielsatlarge.com
Andre Galowicz,
Staff & Volunteer Coordinator
Paid for by Edward Daniels for DC Council At-Large, 1000 1st Street SE, Washington, DC 20003. Edward Daniels, Treasurer. A copy of our report is filed with the Office of Campaign Finance of the District of Columbia Board of Elections.