D.C. Voting Rights Plight Drowned Out by Din in Denver

Even as Abraham Lincoln, Eli Zigas of DC Vote found it hard to grab attention in Denver. He was trying to get signatures for a petition supporting a congressional seat for the District. (By David Nakamura -- The Washington Post)
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"The best thing we can do for D.C. voting rights is to get Barack Obama elected," the mayor said, "and get as many seats in the Senate and House as humanly possible. This bill will not be moved until next year, so between the elections and the inaugural, that's our real time to get something done."

All over Denver, small victories were met with setbacks. After Norton's speech Tuesday, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) drew high marks for her prime-time address -- except perhaps from the District's delegates, who said they were stung by her failure to mention the city when she said: "I will always be grateful to everyone from all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the territories who joined our campaign on behalf of all those people left out and left behind by the Bush administration."

"She left us out on purpose," said Michael D. Brown, the District's shadow senator.

On the streets, the half-dozen canvassers were having mixed success finding people to sign their voting rights petitions.

"I just signed up three McCain supporters!" said Janis Davis, second vice president of the National Federation of Democratic Women. She frowned. "But they asked me if I supported the right to bear arms first."

Making their way along an outdoor pedestrian mall, the group tried to hand out its literature only to be handed fliers from people stumping for other causes, such as Free Speech TV.

"Speaking of free speech . . . " said Eli Zigas, program coordinator for DC Vote, an advocacy group. He sported a beard sans mustache and had dressed up in a tux and top hat to resemble Abraham Lincoln.

But a man with Free Speech TV wasn't interested in Zigas's voting rights spiel. "Hey, sister, what's up?" the man said with a smile to Ekua Boateng, a DC Vote intern standing next to Zigas. Without saying a word, Boateng slapped a sticker with George Washington's silhouette over the words "Let Washington Vote!" on the man's T-shirt.

He signed the petition.

"Some people just say, 'Oh, you're cute, can I take your picture?' " said Zigas, who said he poses for as many as 100 pictures a day as Lincoln. "But the next time people see or hear something about this, they'll be like, 'Oh, yeah, I remember that issue.' It plants a seed, and maybe they'll go looking for more information."

Finally, the D.C. group came upon the Mexican Grill, where workers were handing out free "Burritos for Obama" T-shirts and asking passers-by to sign forms to be in a commercial.

The voting rights volunteers stopped and thrust their petitions into the hands of the burrito fans.