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Do not fill this in! === Voting rights debate === {{See also|District of Columbia voting rights|Political party strength in Washington, D.C.}} [[File:Washington, D.C. license plate, 2017.png|thumb|The city's [[Vehicle registration plates of Washington, D.C.|license plate]] calls for an end to taxation without representation.]] <!--{{PresHead|place=Washington, D.C.|source={{cite web|url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/compare.php?year=2008&fips=11&f=1&off=0&elect=0&type=state|title=Presidential General Election Results Comparison β District of Columbia|publisher=US Election Atlas|access-date=October 26, 2022|author=Leip, David}}}} --!--> Washington, D.C. is not a state and therefore has no federal voting representation in [[United States Congress|Congress]]. The city's residents elect a [[Non-voting members of the United States House of representatives|non-voting delegate]] to the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] ([[District of Columbia's at-large congressional district|D.C. at-large]]), who may sit on committees, participate in debate, and introduce legislation, but cannot vote on the [[Floor (legislative)|House floor]]. The district has no official representation in the [[United States Senate]]. Neither chamber seats the district's elected [[Shadow congressperson|"shadow" representative or senators]]. Unlike residents of [[Territories of the United States|U.S. territories]] such as [[Puerto Rico]] or [[Guam]], which also have non-voting delegates, D.C. residents are subject to all federal taxes.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Individuals-Living-or-Working-in-U.S.-Possessions |title=Individuals Living or Working in U.S. Possessions |access-date=December 2, 2012 |publisher=[[Internal Revenue Service]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121202114846/http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Individuals-Living-or-Working-in-U.S.-Possessions |archive-date=December 2, 2012}}</ref> In the financial year 2012, D.C. residents and businesses paid $20.7 billion in federal taxes, more than the taxes collected from 19 states and the highest [[Federal tax revenue by state|federal taxes per capita]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/12db05co.xls |title=Internal Revenue Gross Collections, by Type of Tax and State, Fiscal Year 2012 |access-date=September 5, 2013 |format=XLS |publisher=Internal Revenue Service |archive-date=October 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020202246/http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-soi/12db05co.xls |url-status=live }}</ref> A 2005 poll found that 78% of Americans did not know residents of Washington, D.C., have less representation in Congress than residents of the 50 states.<ref name="votepoll">{{cite web |url=http://www.dcvote.org/newsletter/spring05.pdf |title=Poll Shows Nationwide Support for DC Voting Rights |access-date=May 29, 2008 |year=2005 |work=DC Vote Voice |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080624204729/http://www.dcvote.org/newsletter/spring05.pdf |archive-date=June 24, 2008}}</ref> Efforts to raise awareness about the issue have included campaigns by [[grassroots]] organizations and featuring the city's unofficial motto, "[[No taxation without representation|End Taxation Without Representation]]", on [[Vehicle registration plates of Washington, D.C.|D.C. vehicle license plates]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dmv.dc.gov/node/156462 |title='Taxation without Representation' Tags |access-date=December 2, 2012 |publisher=District of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115081252/http://dmv.dc.gov/node/156462 |archive-date=January 15, 2013}}</ref> There is evidence of nationwide approval for D.C. voting rights; various polls indicate that 61 to 82% of Americans believe D.C. should have voting representation in Congress.<ref name="votepoll" /><ref>{{cite news |title=Washington Post Poll: D.C. Voting Rights |date=April 23, 2007 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/polls/postpoll_042307.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=June 10, 2008 |archive-date=May 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110504041611/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/polls/postpoll_042307.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Opponents to federal voting rights for Washington, D.C., propose that the [[Founding Fathers of the United States|Founding Fathers]] never intended for district residents to have a vote in Congress since the Constitution makes clear that representation must come from the states. Those opposed to making District of Columbia a state claim such a move would destroy the notion of a separate national capital and that statehood would unfairly grant Senate representation to a single city.<ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=Fortier |title=The D.C. colony |date=May 17, 2006 |url=http://thehill.com/component/content/article/275-john-fortier/4948-the-dc-colony |work=The Hill |access-date=October 10, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112065946/http://thehill.com/component/content/article/275-john-fortier/4948-the-dc-colony |archive-date=November 12, 2010}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). 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