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Every few years, Advisory Neighborhood Commission 8C spirals into chaos. So it is probably not headline news that its members are battling over the group’s finances once again. But this time around, the drama is scrambling the Ward 8 Council race.

The present mess has drawn in the ANC’s chair, Salim Adofo, who represents the Congress Heights area and is one of two candidates challenging Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White in the Democratic primary. Some of Adofo’s colleagues on the commission claim that he repeatedly paid for campaign-like expenses, including campaign software and a mass texting service, using a little over $6,700 in ANC funds in all.

They’ve been writing to all manner of government agencies for the past few months, pushing for an investigation into the matter. In late April, they finally found a taker in D.C. Auditor Kathy Patterson, who launched a review of the ANC’s finances, according to a letter forwarded to Loose Lips. (That investigation is ongoing.)

But here’s the twist: Two of the commissioners raising these concerns, Joyce Doyle and Robbie Woodland, are supporting the other challenger in the Council race, ex-Ballou High School principal Rahman Branch. Adofo claims that the accusations are nothing more than a ploy by his political opponents to knock him down a peg and give Branch a clearer shot at beating White.

“Robbie Woodland made it a point to express to me that she would work to sabotage my campaign, so I think this would be part of that,” Adofo tells LL. He claims that Woodland has generally made commission meetings miserable with her steadfast opposition to his proposals over the past few years he’s been on the ANC, which also covers parts of the Barry Farm and Douglass neighborhoods.

Woodland counters that her opposition to Adofo (and support for Branch) stems from her concerns about Adofo’s methods running the ANC, and her general sense that he has only viewed the role as a stepping stone to higher office. “I’ve told him: ‘I do not like you, I have no respect for you, and I’m gonna put your ass on blast every fucking chance I get,’” Woodand tells LL, a response befitting the reputation she’s earned as one of the ward’s more strident advocates.

It’s not particularly clear to LL that there’s much incentive for Branch’s camp to target Adofo, considering White’s persistent strength in the ward for the past eight years. The incumbent won a recent straw poll backed by the Ward 8 Democrats in a landslide, for example. But the two-term lawmaker hasn’t exactly run a tight campaign either, considering he’s still facing tens of thousands of dollars in campaign finance fines for mistakes he made in his previous bids for office. His treasurer recently told the Washington Post that the campaign was “starting at ground zero” financially after White was forced to switch from a publicly financed campaign to a traditional one. And it’s notable that members of White’s camp, in addition to folks from Branch’s bunch, have also pitched this story about Adofo to LL.

Adofo says the whole thing is much ado about nothing, arguing that Doyle and Woodland see nefarious motives in what is a common practice for ANCs: Paying for commission expenses out of their own pockets, then reimbursing themselves. “ANCs get audited all the time,” he adds.

So is there anything to these allegations? Or is it all just hurt feelings over ANC and campaign drama? Check out our full story online.

—Alex Koma (tips? akoma@washingtoncitypaper.com)

• D.C.’s public pools and splash parks officially open for the season tomorrow (Saturday). Pools will be open on weekends only until June 23. Then they’ll be open six days a week. [Axios, DPR]
• U.S. Attorney for D.C. Matthew Graves announced the arrests of two dozen people who are allegedly part of rival crews operating in the Northeast neighborhoods of Carver Langston and Trinidad. The arrests on gun and drug charges are part of local law enforcement’s partnership with federal agents and a new focus on beefing crews in D.C., Graves said. [Post, FOX5]
• On the latest episode of City Cast DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser talks about crime, her declining approval rating, the upcoming primary election, the city’s finances, and more. [City Cast]
• Take note: Five Red Line stations will close June 1. The Glenmont, Wheaton, Forest Glen, Silver Spring, and Takoma stations are slated to shut down this summer. Only the Takoma station will reopen June 30. The others will remain closed until Aug. 31. [NBC Washington]
• More problems for D.C.’s troubled 911 system. The computer aided dispatch, or CAD, system is down. You can still call 911, but the outage will impact communication between the Office of Unified Communications and first responders. [NBC Washington]

By City Paper Staff (tips? editor@washingtoncitypaper.com)

• Mayor Bowser has repeatedly claimed that fraud is rampant in the city’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program, citing that as a key reason she targeted it for budget cuts. But officials managing the program suspected fraud in less than 1 percent of all ERAP applications, and it didn’t pursue criminal prosecution in a single one of those cases. [NBC Washington]
• The House voted for a second time Thursday to block D.C.’s law allowing noncitizens to participate in local elections. Even more Democrats joined the Republican majority this time around, as GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson made spurious claims about “​​Democrats who want illegal aliens deciding election outcomes.” Notably, Bowser did not join Council Chair Phil Mendelson and Attorney General Brian Schwalb in protesting this latest attack on D.C.’s autonomy. [Post]
• A long-running Georgetown Boys and Girls Club, the Jelleff Community Center Club, says Bowser slashed its annual city appropriation and it could be forced to close this fall. Bowser’s deputies say they’re pausing spending while a renovation of the club’s community center moves ahead, but Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto says she’ll fight to save its funding. [WTOP]

By Alex Koma (tips? akoma@washingtoncitypaper.com)

• It might be a rainy Memorial Day, but at least we can stay out drinking until the early morning hours. All weekend long, some local bars and clubs can serve alcohol until 4 a.m., and that’ll remain true for all summer holidays including Juneteenth, Fourth of July, and Labor Day. [Axios]
• Finally an article dedicated to the best part of dining out: the bread basket. Scroll through to find the best breads and spreads in town. [Eater]
• Brooklyn ice cream expat Van Leeuwen is now offering pup cups too. [Axios]