Majority-White Congress Seeks to Overturn Public Safety Reform Law Supported by 83% of DC’s Majority-Minority Voters.

District Voters Across Race, Gender and Wards (Neighborhoods) Overwhelmingly Support RCCA And Most of Its Provisions

Washington, D.C. | March 2– Next week, a majority white Senate will attempt to overturn a DC Council bill to modernize the city’s criminal code—a measure that is supported by a supermajority of District registered voters. In April 2022, The DC Justice Lab and FWD.us commissioned HIT Strategies to poll District registered voters on the RCCA and found that 83% supported the law, with backing from communities spanning across lines of race, gender, and wards (neighborhoods). Still, a 75% white Congress seeks to assert its supremacy over these voters by blocking the Revised Criminal Code Act (RCCA).

“Like a majority of Americans, District voters support a number of efforts to reimagine public safety; in this case, more than 8 in 10 support the revised criminal code, which modernizes the law and makes it fair,” said Terrance Woodbury, founding partner of HIT Strategies. “Any Democrat who plans to overturn the will of voters on criminal justice reform must not be aware of the data and studies showing voters of across party lines are looking for real solutions over tough crime talk.”

Read the full report memo on HIT Strategies website.

“The political campaign to block RCCA reflects a longstanding effort by Democratic and Republican leaders to stop forward-looking public safety policy that’s supported by most Americans and a majority of Democrats of all races,” said Terrance Woodbury, founding partner of HIT Strategies. “The public opinion data is clear, Democrats who oppose smart policies to reimagine public safety are out of step with a majority of the Democratic party.”

Support of RCCA Provisions Among District Voters

• 93% near-unanimous support guaranteeing the right to a jury trial for offenses that carry jail or prison time.
• 85% support case-by-case judicial review/resentencing for long prison sentences
• 77% support eliminating mandatory minimum sentences in instances where judges could impose prison alternatives.
• 73% support decriminalizing certain conduct such as panhandling, playing games in the street, etc.
• 72% support eliminating life sentences and setting maximum sentences proportionate to the offense

Support of Criminal Justice Reform Among DC Voters

• 86% are generally supportive of criminal justice reform.
• 81% believe it is very important/somewhat important to reduce the number of people in jail in D.C.
• 98% believe ensuring fairness and consistency in the District’s criminal code is important.

About HIT Strategies
As Washington’s leading millennial and minority-owned public opinion research company, HIT Strategies helps leaders and organizations translate target audiences’ values into real-time insights. We understand America’s fastest-growing electorate and consumer groups and specialize in targeting communities under-represented in public opinion data, including Black Americans, Latino Americans, Millennials + Genz, LGBTQ+, Women, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders. For more information, visit hitstrat.com and follow @HITStrat on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.   

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