The D.C. Democratic Party plans to appoint Jamal Holtz, 28, as the interim replacement for Robert White's vacant at-large council seat, sources told WUSA9's Lorenzo Hall. The pick would set up a potential legal fight with Councilmember Christina Henderson, who filed paperwork Nov. 3 to rejoin the Democratic Party.

Henderson's move is the problem. The District's Home Rule Charter caps at-large Democratic members, including the chairman, at three. Henderson's switch would fill that cap, leaving no room for a fourth Democrat in White's seat.

The selection is not yet final. The Hill Rag reported that as of its press time, the party was still soliciting interest from people to fill the interim position.

White resigned effective 11 p.m. Nov. 2 to protect his eligibility to run for D.C. Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives. A 1970 law bars the delegate from holding another paid public office on Election Day. White had served on the D.C. Council since 2016, according to WUSA9.

Under the Home Rule Charter, when an at-large member affiliated with a political party leaves, that party's central committee appoints an interim replacement. The appointee serves until a special election, which must be held on a Tuesday between 70 and 174 days after the vacancy.

Henderson, elected twice as an independent, said she changed her registration only because the at-large cap forced her to in 2020. In a statement posted Nov. 3, she called the restriction the real threat to Home Rule.

"I've worked for Democratic candidates and elected officials up until the day I was sworn in as a member of the DC Council," Henderson wrote, according to WUSA9. "And my support has not waned over the last 6 years."

In an interview with the Hill Rag, Henderson said she was confident in her legal standing. "There's nothing in the DC Code nor the Constitution that prohibits a sitting elected official from changing their party," she said.

The Democratic Party pushed back. According to WUSA9 and the Hill Rag, the party warned in a statement that it would use "the full weight of its bylaws and the law" against anyone trying to circumvent its appointment authority. Party Chair Chioma Iwuoha reinforced that position on X.

Former D.C. Board of Elections (DCBOE) chair Gary Thompson also objected. He wrote on X that no one could assume White's seat simply by changing party affiliation, calling it a violation of the charter, the Hill Rag reported.

Henderson acknowledged the standoff but said it was not hers to resolve. "The question in terms of what happens next, in terms of who gets to name the seat, is still an open question, but not one for me to decide," she told the Hill Rag.

Holtz was elected president of the DC Young Democrats in 2023, according to WUSA9. He also serves on the D.C. Commission on Juvenile Justice Advisory Group and is a D.C. statehood advocate.

Henderson's current term runs through January 2029. Changing her affiliation does not, by itself, create a vacancy in her seat, the Hill Rag reported. Voters will ultimately choose White's permanent successor in a special election to fill the remainder of his term, which also runs through January 2029.