Carol Schwartz

American politician (born 1944)
the Australian business executive and philanthropist

Carol Schwartz (born January 20, 1944) is an American politician from Washington, D. C., who served as a Republican at large member on the Council of the District of Columbia from 1985 to 1989 and again from 1997 to 2009. A five time perennial candidate for mayor, she is the only Republican nominee since the restoration of home rule to garner more than 30 percent of the vote. She announced her fifth campaign for mayor on June 9, 2014 finishing behind Muriel Bowser and David Catania. In 2015, she was appointed to the D. C. Board of Ethics and Government Accountability by Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Carol Schwartz was born on January 20, 1944 in Greenville, Mississippi. before settling down in Midland, Texas, where she spent nearly all of her childhood.

Schwartz entered D. C. politics in 1974 as a member of the Board of Education representing Ward 3. Reelected four years later, she unsuccessfully ran for president of the Board of Education in 1980. In 1984 she ran for the City Council as an at large member. Indeed, before Schwartz's bid, no Republican mayoral candidate had crossed the 30 percent mark. She decided not to run for reelection to the Council after the 1988 suicide of her husband, real estate lawyer David H. Schwartz, which occurred on her birthday. In 1996, Schwartz ran for an at large seat in the Council. In 1998, Schwartz ran for mayor for the third time, campaigning for "safe streets, good schools, a clean environment." She lost to Democrat Anthony A. Williams, tallying 30 percent of the vote. She successfully ran for reelection to the Council in 2000. Schwartz opposed term limits for elected officials. In 2001, Schwartz voted for legislation that overturned the results of a popular referendum limiting members of the D. C. Council to two terms.

In 2002, Schwartz decided not to run officially in the Republican primary for mayor, but said she would consider running in general election if she won the write in vote in the primary election. Schwartz attacked Williams' record as mayor, saying that his "stewardship has been marred by ethical lapses, questionable judgment and a cold lack of compassion for our poorest and most helpless citizens." Williams ended up winning not only the Democratic primary as a write in candidate, but he also won the Republican primary as a write in candidate, receiving 1,707 votes compared to Schwartz's 999. The District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics declared Williams the winner of the Democratic primary, but it also declared that there was no winner in the Republican primary. Schwartz accepted the Republican nomination, officially entering the election for mayor for the fourth time. In 2004, Schwartz successfully ran for reelection to the Council. In 2005, to mock supporters of the proposed smoking ban in D. C. bars, she introduced legislation to "ban the sale of alcohol in all bars, restaurants and nightclubs", arguing that alcohol, like cigarettes, is unhealthy. Schwartz, a 40 year smoker who kicked the habit in 2001, explained her position by telling The Washington Post: "I like freedom of choice about abortion and nude dancingconsenting adults should have choices." Instead of prohibiting smoking in all restaurants and bars, Schwartz favored giving tax credits to those establishments that voluntarily prohibit smoking on their premises.

In 2007 and 2008, Schwartz shepherded the Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act through the Council. The law, which was adopted in March 2008, requires District employers to give their workers paid time off to address their health needs or those of a family member. The bill faced significant opposition from the District's business community, as well as from several of Schwartz's colleagues on the Council. The law made the District the second jurisdiction in the U. S. to create a mandated sick leave requirement, following San Francisco. The D. C. law represents the first time a paid sick days requirement was adopted by a city or state level legislative body in the U. S.; the San Francisco law was adopted as a ballot initiative.

Schwartz ran for reelection to the Council in 2008. Patrick Mara, a government relations consultant, ran against her in the Republican primary election. Mara depicted Schwartz as "not representative of core urban Republican values." He did not consider her a fiscal conservative, saying that Schwartz "did nothing to halt a 51 percent increase in the D. C. budget in four years." In response, Schwartz noted another council member who voted for the budget increases was David Catania, whom Mara has said he admires. The D. C. Republican Party endorsed Schwartz in the primary. The Service Employees International Union Local 722 also endorsed Schwartz. The business community strongly supported Mara. The Greater Washington Board of Trade and the D. C. Chamber of Commerce PAC both endorsed Mara and raised money for his campaign. According to unofficial results released on September 10, Mara had received 60 percent of votes, while Schwartz received 40 percent. On September 15, Schwartz announced that she would run as a write in candidate in the general election. Endorsements in the general election were varied. The D. C. Republican party, Log Cabin Republicans of D. C., and the Greater Washington Board of Trade all supported Mara. The editorial board of The Washington Post published an endorsement of both Mara and incumbent Democrat Kwame Brown. The Fraternal Order of Police has endorsed Schwartz. Service Employees International Union Local 722, and the news editor of The Georgetown Voice supported Michael Brown. Among sitting council members, Jim Graham, Muriel Bowser, and Phil Mendelson endorsed Schwartz. Vincent Gray, Harry Thomas, Jr., David Catania, and Marion Barry endorsed Michael Brown. Kwame Brown received 48 percent of votes, earning him reelection to the council, and Michael Brown received 20 percent, giving him the seat formerly occupied by Schwartz. In third place, write in votes, including votes for Schwartz, comprised 11 percent.

Schwartz is a moderate Republican; fiscally conservative and socially liberal. She opposes redirecting public money toward private and religious school through school vouchers and supports allowing smoking and nude dancing in bars. A fiscal conservative, she supports reducing taxes and smaller government budgets. but she opposed instituting same sex marriage in Washington as of 2008. She said her opposition stems not from her opposition to same sex marriage, but her belief that it would engender a backlash from Congress. Schwartz has voted for legislation prohibiting insurance companies from discriminating against people with AIDS. Schwartz voted in favor of the Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act, which requires District employers to give their employees paid sick leave. and full control over its own affairs, she does not favor statehood for the District, saying, "Statehood would be cutting off our nose to spite our face. We shouldn't give up our unique status as the national capital."

She was married to David Schwartz. They have two daughters and one son. All her children attended and graduated from District of Columbia Public Schools. Schwartz's son is singer songwriter Doug Levitt. David committed suicide on January 20, 1988, his wife's 44th birthday. Schwartz's autobiography, Quite a Life! From Defeat to Defeat And Back, was published in 2017.