For the first time since being charged with taking a bribe, D.C. Councilmember Trayon White publicly apologized.
The apology came during his speech at his swearing-in ceremony for another term on the council -- a swearing in that took place despite the likelihood he will be expelled from the council in a matter of weeks.
"As you can imagine, this has been a bittersweet moment for me," White, councilmember for Ward 8, said during that speech.
White took the oath of office on Thursday morning, administered by his council colleague Janeese Lewis George. George, along with 10 fellow councilmembers, voted last month to move forward with expelling White from office.
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White was overwhelmingly re-elected to represent Ward 8, just weeks after federal prosecutors charged him with taking more than $150,000 in bribes.
White has maintained his innocence and pushed back at his colleagues, who have urged him to step down. But until now, he had not publicly apologized or acknowledged any wrongdoing.
"As a public servant, I, we, have a duty to our city," White said. "This morning I want to say I apologize to my city, and I love my city to the core of who I am. I'm not a perfect man, but if you get to know me, you know that I'm a good man."
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"With a troubled heart, today I wanted to say that I'm committed to bettering myself and bettering the community, and I'm not an island unto myself," White said. "And today I'm grateful, humble and emotional about being re-elected."
After the ceremony, White refused to answer questions from reporters.
There were other councilmembers sworn in Thursday, including the District's newest councilmember Wendel Felder, councilmember for Ward 7.
Asked whether he supports a new football stadium at the RFK site, Felder was noncommittal.
"I need to talk to residents to figure out what's best for the community," Felder said, adding he has "not necessarily" formed an opinion on stadium plans.
"The first step was getting the land back," Felder said. "We've successfully got the land back. Now we want to go back to the neighborhood, the surrounding communities and hear from neighbors in terms of what they want to see happen at that site."
"If the residents want it, I'm in full support of it. If not, then we'll go back to the drawing board. The stadium shouldn't drive the conversation when the reality is, Ward 7 has some pressing issues and there's opportunities for a lot of growth and we want to make sure that Ward 7 in its entirety is uplifted, versus one section of the ward," Felder said.
As for whether he would vote to expel White, Felder was noncommittal.
"It's not that I don't have an opinion," Felder said. "But when I've been talking to residents, what happened in Ward 8 didn't come up in Ward 7. Folks want to know what I'm gonna do to make our streets safer. Residents want to know what I'm going to do to improve our schools. Residents also want to know what I'm gonna do to make sure we bring neighborhood-serving amenities and other economic engines towards 7. That's what came up a lot throughout my time in the community.
White will have an opportunity to present his case to the D.C. Council on Jan. 28. On Feb. 4, the council will vote on whether to expel him from the council.
The federal bribery trial is not set to begin until 2026.
If White is voted off the council next month, there would be a special election held to fill the seat. White could run in that special election and regain his seat, forcing the council to decide whether to remove him a second time.
