D.C. Mayor-elect Janeese Lewis George has hired the Police Executive Research Forum to lead a local and national search for the city's next police chief.

Lewis George made the announcement at her first post-election press conference on Wednesday, Nov. 4, where she also called for a forensic analysis and desk-by-desk audit of government agencies, according to WTOP.

The two commitments mark Lewis George's earliest concrete governing moves as she prepares to take office Jan. 2, 2027. As we reported Wednesday, Nov. 4, she also introduced her transition team and opened a jobs portal for her incoming administration.

Lewis George said she has already engaged and contracted with the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), a nonprofit policy organization, to conduct a local and national search for a permanent police chief.

"They have conducted and assisted over 200 police executive searches, including in Baltimore and Boston, and so we are excited for them to begin their work," Lewis George said, according to WTOP. "We have asked them to work as swiftly as possible."

She also said she would not rush the process at the expense of finding the right candidate. DC News Now quoted her saying, "I'm not going to put a timeline on that process. We obviously want to make sure we have someone there, but we want someone who is quality."

Budget deficit and agency audits

With the District facing a multimillion-dollar deficit, Lewis George said she would order a forensic analysis and desk audit of city agencies once she takes office. D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson has warned the District faces an estimated $650 million funding gap in fiscal year 2028 to maintain programs supported by one-time funding, according to 7News.

"In doing this forensic analysis and a desk audit, we will be able to make some very clear decisions about any restructuring we need to do in government to make our government more efficient and to save District taxpayers' dollars," Lewis George said, according to WTOP.

In an October interview with 7News, Lewis George said she had not identified specific programs she would eliminate. The desk audit would involve going agency by agency, asking employees what their jobs are and what they do, DC News Now reported.

Transition team and other priorities

Lewis George introduced members of her transition team, which includes former D.C. Deputy Mayor Beatriz "BB" Otero, former Office of Presidential Personnel Director Gautam Raghavan and Aaron Jenkins, who served as director of the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships in the Obama administration. Transition team director Jennifer Levy is leading the effort.

On youth crime, Lewis George said: "I am charging them with coming up with a youth agenda and also establishing a D.C. Youth Advisory Council, which I was a proud member of under Mayor Williams' administration."

She also said she wants to end cooperation between D.C. police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a position she said she heard from residents during her campaign.

Lewis George said she is preparing for meetings at the White House to discuss housing and development. She also said she is working with Del. Robert White and Attorney General Brian Schwab on legal strategies to address the Trump administration's actions on federal lands in the District.

Lewis George will be sworn in Jan. 2, 2027, the same day she resigns her Ward 4 council seat.