Kenyan R. McDuffie is a lifelong Washingtonian, experienced civil rights attorney, and nationally recognized leader in urban policy. His work has transformed how the nation’s capital approaches crime, public safety, and inclusive economic growth.
A proud native Washingtonian, McDuffie rose from DC public schools to Howard University, graduating summa cum laude, before earning his law degree at the University of Maryland School of Law, where he served as an editor of the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class. He began his legal career as a law clerk and then as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Prince George’s County, before serving as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division. At DOJ, he litigated cases to protect constitutional rights and ensure equal justice under law—experience that grounds his ongoing fight for fairness and civil rights at home in the District.
Elected to the DC Council in 2012 and now serving At-Large, McDuffie quickly distinguished himself as both a coalition builder and a policy innovator. As Chair of the Judiciary Committee, he authored the landmark Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results Act (NEAR Act), which established a groundbreaking public-health approach to reducing violence. He also led juvenile justice reforms that ended life sentences for youth, banned solitary confinement, and expanded rehabilitation opportunities. McDuffie spearheaded the District’s police body-worn camera program and authored “Ban the Box” legislation to ensure returning citizens are not locked out of jobs and housing.
As Chair of the Committee on Business & Economic Development, McDuffie has championed policies to make Washington’s prosperity more inclusive. He authored the Racial Equity Achieves Results Act (REACH Act)—the first law of its kind in the nation—which requires the District to apply a racial equity lens to government decision-making. He also directed hundreds of millions of dollars in relief to small businesses and workers hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to push for local hiring, small business participation, and economic opportunity in every major government development project.
Today, Councilmember McDuffie stands at the center of the national debate over democracy, policing, and federal overreach. As the District faces unprecedented attempts at federal takeover, McDuffie brings his legal expertise, lived experience, and legislative record to the fight for DC’s right to self-governance. His voice—rooted in the neighborhoods where he grew up and sharpened in the courtrooms where he practiced law—makes him a compelling advocate for inclusive democracy and safer, stronger communities.
Kenyan and his wife, Princess, live in his childhood home, where they are raising their two daughters, Kesi and Jozi.