Good morning. This is The Washington Sun Metro Newsletter for Oct. 27, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!
In today’s newsletter: Early voting, evictions and the big questions facing Jayden Daniels.
Capital Weather’s Daily Digit — 9/10. A perpetual parade of autumn perfection persists through the end of October. All treats, no tricks! Read the full forecast.
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“NATL GUARD STAY AWAY”
That was the message chalked onto the sidewalk near a polling place in Columbia Heights on Monday morning, when a weeklong period of in-person early voting kicked off.
D.C. may not be particularly politically competitive or important in this year’s midterm elections, but The Washington Sun’s Martin Austermuhle reports that some activists and residents remain nervous about the possibility that federal agents or the National Guard may show up at or near polling places — potentially intimidating voters.
Fears of such intimidation spiked this month when Guard troops were spotted standing by a ballot drop box in Foggy Bottom. That prompted the D.C. Board of Elections to formally ask Guard leadership to ensure it wouldn’t happen again; the leadership quickly responded to say that troops “are directed not to monitor or secure polling locations.”
After the incident, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb issued guidance to election officials and residents confirming that federal law bans troops from operating near polling places, and prohibits anyone from intimidating or coercing voters or interfering with the work of a local election official. The elections board also told all volunteer coordinators of D.C. polling places that the National Guard, ICE and any other federal agents have to stay at least 50 feet away.
The general uneasiness comes as the Trump administration has ramped up election-related efforts, including an unsuccessful push to rein in the use of mail ballots and more recent litigation taking aim at alleged voting by noncitizens. The latter fight hits close to home in D.C., where noncitizens are legally allowed to cast ballots for local offices, but not federal ones.
Early in-person voting will continue in D.C. through Sunday; all the locations can be found here. Voters can also leave their ballot at any of the 55 drop boxes around D.C. As of Monday morning, more than 20,000 voters had opted for a drop box.
DEEP DIVE
Evictions are at a record high in D.C. right now, and as those cases crawl through the backlogged court system, tenants build up insurmountable arrears while housing providers go without income. Landlords say it’s an economic “death spiral.”
The D.C. Council is floating a pilot program that would help avoid the eviction process altogether. The bill, dubbed the “SHARE Act,” would require tenants who owe less than three months or $6,000 in unpaid rent to enter mediation with their landlord to talk things out before a case gets filed.
What then? A tenant can agree to move out, get repairs to their unit or, in some cases, get a third of their debt cleared by the District and another third forgiven by the landlord — if they cover the remaining balance.
“We support voluntary mediation coupled with rental assistance, and this is a good pilot,” Dean Hunter, the CEO of D.C.’s Small Multifamily Owners Association, told The Sun. Hunter added that he believes the pilot should begin sooner than fiscal year 2028 to relieve the current rent payment “crisis.”
At a public hearing yesterday, the D.C. attorney general’s office testified that it supports the idea, and wants to see the pilot strengthened by including legal representation for tenants and handling 5,000 cases instead of the proposed 2,000. An executive at real estate firm WC Smith said he wants it canned, over worries that it’ll encourage residents to build up debts, knowing two-thirds might be covered for them.
At-large council member Robert White, who introduced the bill, said the test could model a way to keep landlords, tenants and courts afloat.
“We cannot evict our way out of the rental arrears crisis,” he said.
FROM THE DISTRICT
A man was fatally stabbed at the D.C. Jail on Sunday with a “makeshift weapon,” The Sun’s Jenny Gathright reports. He’s the fourth person to die while in D.C. Department of Corrections custody this year.
The VA requested an emergency order of kitchen equipment for its D.C. medical center after a June accreditation survey found insect debris and unidentified residue in one of the facility’s kitchens, The Sun’s Yasmeen Khan reports. According to the contracting request for the items, continuing to work with the kitchen’s equipment posed an “ongoing infection control risk.”
Stilettos in the Fast Lane: The District is hosting its 39th annual 17th Street High Heel Race tonight. The event celebrates the District’s LGBTQIA+ community with costumes, live music and local drag performers.
The race is one of D.C.’s most “visually stunning” events, said Japer Bowles, executive director of the mayor’s office of LGBTQ affairs. The Sun’s Justice Covert reports that more than 250 people are expected to compete in the mad dash from R Street to Church Street at 9 p.m.
“Some say it’s a really, really quick race, you know, 45 seconds for some to get from one block to the end,” Bowles said. “But, for a lot, they take it all in and they do the full strut in a costume.”
Bowles said the winner will receive a gift basket worth more than $200 in gift cards and discounts from businesses along 17th Street. He offered that the best strategy is to “wear boots.”
FROM VIRGINIA
A Manassas Park High School teacher is facing charges of illegally possessing a firearm on school property after a loaded handgun was found on the ground across the street in the parking lot of Manassas Park Middle School early Monday, Covert reports.
School officials said on social media they closed all schools in the area “out of an abundance of caution” to give the police department time to investigate. A later update noted that the staff member was placed on leave per school policy.
A lawsuit filed by the family of a Northern Virginia man who died in Alexandria police custody in August 2025 alleges that the two officers who arrested him “acted with reckless disregard” for his safety, and that the city did not properly train officers on how to respond to detainees who need medical attention, The Sun’s Kendall Staton reports.
The man accused of beheading the Iwo Jima memorial statue in Quantico was granted bond on Monday, ABC7 reports, though ICE has issued him a detainer.
WHAT YOU GET FOR $500,000
This week’s real estate column looks at what buyers can get for around $500,000 in the D.C. area.
Where is this house listed? Click on your guess to see the answer:
SPORTS
How good has Jayden Daniels been this year? Well, the answer is complicated. The third-year quarterback has had his ups and downs this season as Washington has stumbled through a 1-4-1 start. Dan Pizzuta takes a deeper look at the numbers to answer three big questions: Has Daniels been effective under center? Why has he struggled under pressure? And how can he overcome the loss of receiver Terry McLaurin?
Speaking of consistency, The Sun’s Martenzie Johnson reports that coach Dan Quinn believes it is Washington’s biggest issue.
“My belief in them as a group is really strong,” Quinn said Monday at his weekly press conference. “We’ve been in every game and just, I haven’t loved all four quarters together. That’s what we’re chasing.”
The team will be closer to full strength coming out of the bye, with quarterback Marcus Mariota and defensive lineman Charles Omenihu set to return to practice this week.
Mystics center Shakira Austin earned All-WNBA second team honors after a career season. The DMV native averaged 17 points and 9.5 rebounds, serving as a veteran leader on a Mystics team that surpassed expectations. The Sun’s Alex Schiffer reports that Austin is the first Mystics player since 2021 to earn a spot on an all-league team.
Thank you for reading! If you liked this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. If someone shared it with you, please sign up — it’s free! Got a tip or comments to share? Email us at metro@washsun.com. Finally, the answer to yesterday’s trivia question was A) Fort Totten. It was never considered as a D.C. United stadium site. A special shout-out to Candace Butler, who answered first.
The newsletter was produced by Andrew Burton, Michael Errigo and Nikie Johnson.
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