Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA) introduced the Make DC Square Again Act on Apr. 22, seeking to reverse the 1846 retrocession of Arlington County and the City of Alexandria from the District of Columbia to Virginia. The proposed legislation aims to return Washington, D.C., to its original ten-mile-square boundaries as established by the Residence Act of 1790.
The issue is significant because it addresses congressional authority over federal territory and has potential implications for representation and voting patterns in Virginia. According to McCormick, “The Constitution never authorized Congress to carve pieces out of the federal District and hand them back to a state.” He also said, “Democrats have spent years manipulating maps and boundaries to rig elections. The Make DC Square Again Act restores the original ten-mile-square District and ends the artificial advantage Virginia Democrats have recently gained from all the federal bureaucrats moving into Virginia.”
The Enclave Clause in Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress exclusive legislative authority over a district “not exceeding ten miles square,” but does not specify any power for retrocession back to states. In 1846, Congress ceded Alexandria County—now Arlington County and the City of Alexandria—to Virginia without explicit constitutional authorization.
This bill follows a recent partisan redistricting referendum in Virginia that resulted in a new map favoring Democratic candidates in most congressional districts. Supporters argue that about 250,000 votes from Arlington and Alexandria currently influence statewide elections in Virginia—votes that would otherwise belong with Washington D.C.
McCormick has served as Georgia’s representative for its sixth district since replacing Lucy McBath in 2023 according to Ballotpedia. He won his seat after defeating Bob Christian with nearly two-thirds of votes cast as reported by The New York Times. Born in Las Vegas in 1968, he currently lives in Suwanee according to his official biography and holds degrees from Oregon State University (1990) and National University (2010) as listed by Congress.gov.
Supporters say that restoring D.C.’s historic borders would correct what they describe as an unconstitutional error dating back more than a century.
