1996 United States Shadow Representative election in the District of Columbia

The 1996 Shadow Representative election in the District of Columbia took place on November 15, 1996, to elect a shadow member to the United States House of Representatives to represent the District of Columbia. Unlike non-voting delegates, the Shadow Representative is only recognized by the District of Columbia and is not officially sworn or seated. One-term incumbent John Capozzi declined to run for reelection and was succeeded by fellow Democrat Sabrina Sojourner.

United States Shadow Representative election in the District of Columbia, 1996

November 15, 1996
Turnout	52.4% pp[1]
Nominee Sabrina Sojourner Gloria R. Corn Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 111,413 20,240 Percentage 83.4% 15.2%
Shadow Representative before election John Capozzi Democratic Elected Shadow Representative Sabrina Sojourner Democratic

Primary elections

Primary elections were held on September 10.

Candidates

• Sabrina Sojourner, management consultant[2]

Declined to run

• John Capozzi, incumbent Shadow Representative (Ran for City Council at-large)[3]

Results

District of Columbia Shadow Representative Democratic primary election, 1996[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Sabrina Sojourner	28,113	94.42
	n/a	Write-ins	1,660	5.58
Total votes			29,773	100.0

Other primaries

Primaries were held for the Republican, Statehood, and Umoja parties but no candidates were on the ballot and only write-in votes were cast.[3]

Other candidates

Republican

• Gloria Corn, writer and candidate for Shadow Representative in 1992[2]

General election

The general election took place on November 15.

Results

General election results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Sabrina Sojourner	111,413	83.37	+14.72
	Republican	Gloria R. Corn	20,240	15.15	+2.83
	n/a	Write-ins	1,984	1.48	+0.40
Total votes			133,637	100.0%

References

1. "November 15 General Election". DC Board of Elections. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
2. Harris, Hamil (October 24, 1996). "3 Take Plunge Against Norton". Washington Post. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
3. "September 10 Primary Election". DC Board of Elections. Retrieved 26 January 2021.