District of Columbia
Discover District of Columbia
Introduction
The District of Columbia is not a state. It is a federal district, created by the Constitution to hold the seat of government and placed under the authority of Congress rather than any state legislature.
Its boundary and the city of Washington D.C. are now the same thing: one district, one city, about 68 square miles cut from land ceded by Maryland and Virginia in 1790.
Its roughly 700,000 residents — more people than live in Wyoming or Vermont — pay federal taxes, serve in the military, and have no voting representation in Congress. The District elects a delegate to the House who may speak and sit on committees but cannot vote on final passage, and it has no senators at all.
For everything about visiting — the National Mall, the Smithsonian museums, when to come and how to get around — see the city of Washington D.C. itself.