Elissa Silverman
| Elissa Silverman | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| At-Large Member of the Council of the District of Columbia | |
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Assumed office January 2, 2015 |
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| Preceded by | David Catania |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1973-1974 Baltimore, Maryland |
| Political party |
Independent (2014–present) Democratic (until 2014) |
| Residence | Washington, D.C. |
| Alma mater |
University of Maryland (M.U.P. student) Brown University (B.A.) |
| Profession | Journalist, Policy analyst |
Elissa Silverman is an American politician who is an independent at-large member of the Council of the District of Columbia.
Elissa Silverman was born to parents Jack and Ruth Silverman in Baltimore, Maryland, where she attended the public schools. She majored in economics and history at Brown University. She has worked as a reporter for The Washington Post and, earlier, the Washington City Paper where she wrote the Loose Lips column. She also helped the D.C. Public Trust in its attempt to prohibit direct corporate contributions in local politics. In April 2009, she was hired as a policy analyst and communications director at the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute, a position she held until resigning to run for public office in April 2014. She has attended University of Maryland, pursuing a master's degree in urban studies and planning.
When At-large Council Member Phil Mendelson was elected council chairman in 2012, his former seat on the Council was declared vacant. Silverman filed to run as a Democratic candidate for the at-large seat. Silverman ran against incumbent Anita Bonds, and Board of Education member Patrick Mara. Silverman said she would not accept campaign contributions from corporations.
Silverman supported increasing funding to government programs that subsidize affordable housing, and expanding the minimum wage law to cover restaurant workers. Silverman said it is a problem that a quarter of District students attend their zoned neighborhood schools, saying more governmental resources should improve schools.
Following a $440 million budget surplus in 2012, Bonds and Mara supported tax cuts, while Silverman said she would prioritize helping people in other ways before cutting taxes. A political action committee criticized Silverman when she said she did not think residents minded paying taxes and minded poor city services more.
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