LaRuby May facts for kids

LaRuby Zinea May (born December 28, 1975) is an American politician and African American lawyer. She used to represent Ward 8 on the Council of the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C.. She won a special election on May 10, 2015, after the previous council member, Marion Barry, passed away.

May was sworn into office on May 14, 2015. She served the rest of Barry's term, which ended on December 31, 2016. During her time on the council, she worked on issues like community safety and improving local neighborhood groups called Advisory Neighborhood Commissions. She also supported building a sports arena in her ward. May is a member of the Democratic Party.

In January 2016, she announced she would run for a full four-year term. However, she lost the primary election in June 2016 to Trayon White. As of 2018, she is the chairperson of United Medical Center.

LaRuby May's Life and Career

Early Life and Education

LaRuby May was born around 1975 in Pensacola, Florida. Her parents were Reverend Theophalis May and Mary May. Her father owned a construction company and was known for saving old buildings in Pensacola. He was also a pastor.

May earned her first degree in human development and family studies from Eckerd College in 1997. She then went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C.. There, she received a master's degree in counseling. In 2006, she earned her law degree (JD) from the University of the District of Columbia. She is allowed to practice law in both Washington, D.C., and Florida.

Early Career Work

May moved to Ward 8 in 2002. While studying law, she became the executive director of the Gift Family Resource Center. This program offered after-school and summer activities for elementary and middle school children. She left this role in 2003.

From 2005 to 2006, May worked for D.C. Council member Marion Barry. She started as an intern and later became the Director of Constituent Services.

In 2007, May joined Vision of Victory Community Development Corporation. This nonprofit helped at-risk teens and young adults learn job skills. It also worked on building affordable homes. Council member Marion Barry helped the program get funding. May became the executive director of this program in May 2008. She continued in this role even while serving on the Board of Commissioners for the District of Columbia Housing Authority.

May was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia Housing Authority in April 2009. This appointment was confirmed by the D.C. District Council. In November 2009, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty made May the chairperson of the board. The Housing Authority was tasked with building new city parks and recreation centers. May helped carry out these plans.

May's work with the D.C. Housing Authority connected her closely with Mayor Fenty. She also worked for Capitol Services Management, a company that managed D.C. public housing buildings.

Working with Muriel Bowser

In 2012, May helped start the Community College Preparatory Academy. This was the first adult charter school in Ward 8. She served as the first chairperson of its board.

That same year, May joined the election campaign of Muriel Bowser. Bowser was running for a seat on the District Council. May and Bowser had first met in 2010 while working on Mayor Fenty's campaign. May became a close supporter of Bowser.

When Bowser ran for mayor in 2013, she named May her Ward 8 field coordinator. May helped Bowser win a key vote in Ward 8. Bowser later won the Democratic primary and became mayor in November 2014. Bowser then included May on her mayoral transition team, which helped prepare for the new administration.

2015 D.C. Council Special Election

Running for Council

Ward 8 Council Member Marion Barry passed away in November 2014. Two weeks later, LaRuby May decided to run for his council seat. Many people thought Marion Christopher Barry, the late council member's son, would be the top candidate. However, May quickly gained support. Brianne Nadeau, a Ward 1 Council Member, was one of May's first public supporters.

By February 2015, 14 other candidates were also running. May was very successful at raising money for her campaign. By January 30, she had raised over $177,000. This helped her become well-known in Ward 8. Most of her donations came from businesses.

By late February, May was seen as a front-runner. She raised another $66,000, mostly from real estate and construction companies. Mayor Muriel Bowser helped May with her fundraising efforts.

May received another boost when her name was randomly chosen to appear second on the ballot. By March 10, her fundraising reached almost $240,000.

On April 3, May easily won a Ward 8 Democratic party straw poll. This showed her strong lead in the race. She received 177 votes, while Trayon White received 79 votes.

The Washington Post supported May in an editorial on April 12. She also received support from former Ward 8 Council Member Sandy Allen. Mayor Bowser's strong support was a big help to May. Bowser shared her campaign organization, giving May many experienced volunteers and voter lists.

Some opponents criticized May, calling her an "outsider" who favored big businesses. They also said she was too close to Mayor Bowser. One candidate, Eugene D. Kinlow, claimed that the charter school May led was not doing well.

Hundreds of people volunteered for May's campaign. They visited homes across Ward 8 and helped people register to vote. As election day got closer, May provided vans to help voters get to early voting locations. She also hosted a free barbecue and concert. By the end of her campaign, May had raised nearly $270,000.

Election Results

The Ward 8 special election on April 28, 2015, had a high number of voters. Over 6,200 people voted. Initial results showed LaRuby May with 1,711 votes and Trayon White with 1,559 votes. This was a difference of only 152 votes.

However, over 1,000 provisional and absentee ballots still needed to be counted. The District of Columbia Board of Elections (BOE) said the race was too close to call. Voters who registered on election day or had address issues had 10 days to prove their residency.

By May 7, with most of the extra ballots counted, May led White by 80 votes. On May 9, the BOE announced the final unofficial count. LaRuby May won the election with 1,955 votes to Trayon White's 1,876. This was a difference of 79 votes. Since the winning margin was more than 1 percent, an automatic recount was not needed.

The BOE officially confirmed the election results on May 14, 2015. May was then sworn in as a D.C. council member. White initially asked for a recount but later withdrew his request.

Council Term

LaRuby May became the Ward 8 council member on May 14, 2015. She was expected to help Mayor Bowser's plans on the Council. On June 1, she was appointed to committees on Housing and Community Development, Health and Human Services, and the Judiciary. May strongly supported Mayor Bowser's budget ideas.

By April 2016, May was known as one of Mayor Bowser's most reliable supporters on the Council.

D.C. Fire and EMS Department

The District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department had many problems. These included budget issues and equipment breakdowns.

May was part of the Judiciary Committee, which oversees this department. She missed a key vote on June 30, 2015, regarding the new Fire Chief. However, she was present and voted to confirm him on July 14, 2015.

The Fire Chief said more ambulances were needed. Mayor Bowser wanted to hire private ambulance services. During a hearing on October 1, May shared a negative experience she had with the DCFEMS. She also worried that private services might not treat all people with respect.

Basketball Practice Facility

Ward 8 had not seen much economic growth. To help the area, Mayor Bowser announced a plan in September 2015. The city would build a sports arena on the St. Elizabeths Hospital campus. This arena would be a practice facility for the Washington Wizards and Washington Mystics professional basketball teams.

The city agreed to pay $23 million of the $55 million cost. Other public funds would add $27 million. The teams' owner, Ted Leonsis, said he would contribute $5 million for the arena and another $10 million for community projects. May fully supported this plan. In March 2016, she opposed a law that would limit taxpayer spending if costs went over budget.

PEPCO Study

In April 2014, a company called Exelon announced it would merge with Pepco. Pepco provides electricity and natural gas to D.C. residents. On August 24, 2015, the District of Columbia Public Service Commission did not approve the merger. They were concerned about Pepco's role in the new company and Exelon's use of coal power.

The D.C. Council looked at ways to get involved. Council member Mary Cheh suggested funding a study to see if the city should buy Pepco and make it a public utility. Council member Anita Bonds proposed stopping the funding for this study. May supported Bonds' idea, as did council member Vincent Orange.

Dirt-Bike Racing

May also worked on other laws. When illegal dirt-bike racing became a problem on city streets, she suggested a different solution. Instead of just increasing fines, she proposed that the city open a dirt bike racing park. However, she could not say where the park should be. In September 2015, she supported a bill that would remove Advisory Neighborhood Commission members from office if they missed too many meetings.

FreshPAC

In D.C., political groups called political action committees (PACs) could raise unlimited money in non-election years. After Mayor Bowser's election, she and her allies formed FreshPAC. This group raised a lot of money, which worried many people. Donors to FreshPAC included people who had city contracts or were lobbyists.

The D.C. Council quickly worked on a bill to change this law. On October 19, 2015, the bill passed. May and one other council member voted against it. The Washington Post noted that both were facing elections and needed Bowser's financial support. FreshPAC later closed down and returned all donations.

Other Legislation

May also wrote a bill to study how children are affected when a parent goes to prison. This bill passed in November 2015. She also introduced a bill to change the name of Columbus Day to "Indigenous Peoples' Day."

On June 21, 2016, May and another council member, Yvette Alexander, helped defeat a bill. This bill would have stopped any person or company that donated to a city council campaign from getting a city contract worth $100,000 or more.

Political Activities

May was involved in a few political activities that got media attention. In October 2015, she and seven other council members asked Congress not to continue the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship program. This federal program gave money to low-income students to attend private schools.

Despite her opposition to this program, May supported Democrats for Education Reform-D.C. (DFER-D.C.). This education PAC supports charter schools and is largely funded by Wall Street. Mayor Bowser also supported this group.

Committees

During her time on the Council (January 2015 to December 2016), May was part of these committees:

• Committee on Health and Human Services
• Committee on the Judiciary
• Committee on Housing and Community Development

2016 General Election

June Primary

In January 2016, May announced she would run for a full term as the Ward 8 council member. She raised over $90,000 for her campaign. Mayor Muriel Bowser immediately supported May and donated to her campaign.

Her opponent from the special election, Trayon White, also announced he would run again in February 2016. White received support from the Attorney General of the District of Columbia, Karl Racine, and other former opponents.

By March 2015, May had raised $183,000 for her reelection. However, she lost the Democratic primary election to Trayon White. White received 51 percent of the votes, and May received 43 percent.

Personal Life

LaRuby May has lived in Washington, D.C., since 1997, and in Ward 8 since 2002. She is a member of Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Electoral Results

2015

2016