DC voter guide: 2022 election what you need to know – WTOP

D.C. voters have a lot to consider during the 2022 Midterm Elections, with races for the city's next mayor, attorney general, members of the D.C. Council and more.

Election season is here. D.C. voters have a lot to consider during the 2022 Midterm Elections, with races for the citys next mayor, members of the D.C. Council and more.

Mark your calendar: Election Day 2022 falls on Tuesday, Nov. 8.

From how to vote early, deadlines to be aware of, to whats on the ballot, heres what you need to know.

The city started mailing ballots to all registered voters at their D.C. addresses in early October so unless youre voting from outside the District, theres no need to request one. Because mail-in ballots are going out automatically, its critical that you make sure everything is in order with your voter registration. Click here to check your registration information.

If youre not registered to vote yet, you have until Tuesday, Oct. 18 to do so, with online, mail, email or fax options. Click here to find out how. If youll be away from your D.C. residence during the election, you can request an absentee ballot before Monday, Oct. 24.

Like the last election, voters will be able to deposit their completed ballots in drop boxes placed throughout the city starting Friday, Oct. 14, until 8 p.m. on Election Day. See here for where to find a drop box near you, or use D.C.s interactive map.

You can mail in your vote, as long as its postmarked no later than Nov. 8. Keep in mind that the D.C. Board of Elections wont count mailed-in ballots it receives after Nov. 15. Concerns? You can reach the board at 202-727-2525.

Voted already? Kudos for being an upstanding citizen! Track your mail-in ballots status.

If youd rather vote in person this year, D.C.s early voting centers swing open from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 31 through Sunday, Nov. 6. See a list of early voting centers and their current status; there are at least a couple in every ward.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. through 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters can cast their ballot at any of the citys 65 day-of voting centers, regardless of which ward they live in.

Names are shown below in the order theyll appear on the ballot, along with a link to each candidates campaign website if available. For reference, current officeholders are listed in bold. Heres where you find sample ballots specific to your neighborhood.

Voters may select up to two candidates.

Candidates have no listed party affiliation. There are no incumbents on the ballot.

Voters will get their say on Initiative 82, also known as the Increase Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees Measure, which would incrementally up the sub-minimum wage for the Districts tipped workers from its current rate $5.35 per hour, as of this July until it matches the base wage for non-tipped workers by 2027, with tips on top.

Initiative 82 seeks to phase out the so-called tip credit, which lets employers count a portion of a workers tips earned every hour toward D.C.s minimum wage of $16.10. In other words, if your tip puts a workers pay rate at or above the minimum wage, their employer isnt obligated to pay them anything further.

The measures chief proponent is the D.C. Committee to Build a Better Restaurant Industry, which describes itself as being organized by current and former tipped workers as well as concerned citizens who believe in eliminating the archaic tip credit. The campaign argues that the tip credit hurts the Districts tipped workers at bars, restaurants, salons and more by providing a legal route for wage theft, and calls the system a relic of slavery.

Critics, including the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, assert that passing the measure would place an undue burden on small businesses, reduce take-home pay for workers and result in higher prices. The Vote No on 82 campaign claims Initiative 82 would dramatically change the way D.C. restaurants and bars do business.

If all this sounds familiar, youd be right voters passed a similar measure, Initiative 77, in 2018, only for it to be overturned months later by the D.C. Council, which deemed its wording deceptive. But with a different council in charge now, Initiative 82s supporters say thats unlikely to happen again.

You can read Initiative 82 in the form itll appear on the ballot here.

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DC voter guide: 2022 election what you need to know - WTOP