The District of Columbia’s Attorney General, Irvin B. Nathan, tendered his resignation Wednesday, effective Nov. 17. Nathan’s resignation comes the day after D.C. voters elected attorney Karl A. Racine to succeed him.  

“As this administration winds down in the six weeks after my departure, it is time for me to move on, to focus on some long neglected personal issues, and to formulate professional plans for the future,” Nathan wrote in his letter to Mayor Vincent Gray.  

Gray said in a statement Wednesday that Chief Deputy Attorney General Eugene Adams will be named interim attorney general upon Nathan’s departure.  

In his resignation letter, Nathan assured Gray he would help Racine transition to the office. Racine, the District’s first elected attorney general, will be sworn in in January.  

“I pledge that we will make available to the full resources of our office to make a smooth transition to an elected Attorney General,” wrote Nathan, “so that the excellent team we have assembled can function for the benefit of our citizens for years to come.”  

When Racine takes over the office, he will be thrust into an ongoing legal battle over the District’s attempt to achieve budget autonomy through an act passed by a voter referendum. The council, along with Mayor-elect Muriel Bowser, support the Budget Autonomy Act, but Racine agreed with Nathan’s decision not to comply with the legislation. So, the District may have to turn to Congress to receive authority over its budget.  

Related:

D.C. Faces Statehood, Marijuana Challenges With Republican Congress


Rand Paul: Let D.C. Legalize Marijuana, If Voters Want


Could Nov. 4 Render D.C. Budget Autonomy Fight Moot?


Get breaking news alerts and more from Roll Call in your inbox or on your iPhone.