Good morning. Mostly sunny with a high around 73 on this Election Day. A low near 52 overnight. Polls close at 7 PM in Virginia and at 8 PM in the District and in Maryland. We’ve put together a list of watch parties, food and drink deals, and even takeout specials for watching tonight’s results. The Capitals host Dallas this evening.
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I can’t stop listening to
Dream Eaters, “Subhuman.” These lovely Brooklyn goofballs play a sold-out show at Pie Shop tonight with Sandman Sleeps and Gigi Marie.
Take Washingtonian Today with you! I keep ridiculously long playlists on Apple Music and on Spotify of this year’s music recommendations. Here are 2025’s songs (Apple, Spotify), too.
Here’s some administration news you might have blocked out
Reflection day
In a scene seemingly designed to open dozens of think pieces and maybe even a few memoirs, President Trump yesterday delivered a closing message for the midterm elections in front of the Reflecting Pool. There, he spoke less about today’s referendum on his leadership and more about “drain pipes, top soil, limestone, fountains and his favorite kind of columns.” (NYT) Some Republicans “privately expressed exasperation that the president chose not to use a high-profile speech on the eve of the election to squarely focus on the economic issues that voters say they care most about.” (WSJ) Inside the GOP, insiders are “already bracing for an epic blame game.” (Axios)
Midterms mélange
The Supreme Court declined to intervene in the administration’s last-ditch attempt to sequester some 20,000 California ballots it claimed may have been filled out by people who aren’t US citizens. (NBC News) Few of the Justice Department’s current leaders will even acknowledge that Trump lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden. (NYT) It could be days before we know the results of today’s vote. (AP)
Administration perambulation
A federal judge in DC vaporized DOJ’s unorthodox attempt to charge former FBI officials Bradley Benavides and Nikki Floris with lying to Congress about Hunter Biden‘s laptop. “What has transpired here cannot be described as anything other than weaponization,” US Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui said, reading his ruling from the bench. (AP) Another former FBI official, Douglas DePodesta, sued the feds over his dismissal amid a botched case against ICE protesters in the Chicago region, saying his career was collateral damage in a case “pursued in part to sideline a leftist congressional candidate in Chicago.” (Washington Sun) A federal judge in Massachusetts dismissed the administration’s attempt to get Harvard’s admission records. (Politico) DOJ won’t allow former special counsel Jack Smith to testify in the BBC’s defense of a $10 billion lawsuit Trump filed against the British news organization, an action the Beeb has turned into “an opportunity to seek records as part of the discovery process.” (Washington Sun) More than half US service members polled by a veterans’ group say they “want to separate from service sooner because they said the military is becoming more politicized.” (Military.com)
Perfect Saturdays, by Daniella Byck
Imagine my surprise on November 1 when I walked outside my home to see a neighbor had already put out Christmas decorations. Let the pumpkins have a moment to rot, please! But if you, like my neighbor, are already diving into the holiday season, you’ll be delighted to know some festive activities are starting next week. In Vienna, Meadowlark Botanical Garden’s annual Winter Walk of Lights opens on November 11. Clutch warm drinks while you stroll the half-mile trail, taking in the twinkling bulbs. In addition to the garden light show, the DC Holiday Market in Dupont Circle kicks off on November 12, bringing a cheery village of vendors for gift shopping. Find jewelry, antiques, candles, and more.
Recently on Washingtonian dot com
• A sexy force-feeding costume, a duck in a dining room—the foie gras debate in DC has gotten pretty weird. And while we’re at it, here are some notable only-in-DC Halloween costumes folks spotted.
• Sylvie McNamara reports from one of the stranger recent DC events: A lightly attended press conference in which a Beverly Hills shrink proposed classifying “Trump Derangement Syndrome” as a mental illness.
• A first look at Carter G. Woodson‘s home, which will reopen as a museum, following a years-long renovation, on Saturday.
• Perhaps you’d like to lie on the ground and look at the stars. Understandable. We’ve got you.
• It’s your turn to be a food critic. Take our restaurant survey and you may win a $150 gift card.
Local news links
• Robert White resigned from the DC Council yesterday, his plans for two last months in office scuttled by an obscure law that would otherwise prevent him from taking office as DC’s non-voting delegate to Congress. He’s expected to win that job easily today. (City Cast DC)
• Today in ¯\_(ツ)_/¯: Jack Evans wants to get back onto the DC Council. (Alex Koma/Bluesky)
• The administration has submitted its plans for East Potomac Park to the National Capital Planning Commission. (Washington Post)
• Capital Weather’s winter preview has arrived. (Capital Weather)
• Hundreds of teens reportedly attended a Halloween blowout at a North Bethesda short-term rental house, trashing the joint and infuriating neighbors. (NBC4 Washington)
• Here’s video of a brawl outside an Arlington hookah lounge on the Sunday side of Halloween night. (ARLnow)
• A failed transformer caused a power outage in parts of downtown yesterday (including at Washingtonian’s office). (DC News Now)
• If you’re going to plop a roundabout into your street, make sure you’ve left enough room for buses. (ARLnow)
• Andy Garcia, Paul Anka, and Barbara Mandrell will receive Kennedy Center Honors. The medal should probably resemble an asterisk, right? (Washington Post)
• Michael Wilbon said he’d take a leave of absence from ESPN to deal with what he called “multiple health issues.” (ESPN)
• Hunters in Maryland took down 89 black bears last month. (WUSA9)
Things to Do
• There’s a Fleetwood Mac sing-along at the Birchmere tonight.
• Mark G. Meadows joins Strathmore’s 2027 class of artists in residence for a concert.
See more ideas for this week from Briana Thomas, who writes our Things to Do newsletter.
Andrew Beaujon joined Washingtonian in late 2014. He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. He lives in Del Ray.
