Longtime Democratic District of Columbia Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton was scammed by individuals claiming to work for an HVAC company, according to a police report describing the 88-year-old lawmaker as being in the “early stages of dementia.”
Norton, who has served as Washington’s nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives since 1991, has repeatedly stated she is running for a 19th term in 2026 despite concerns over her age. Scammers came to the delegate’s residence Thursday afternoon and charged over $4,000 to her credit card for cleaning services they did not carry out, according to a police report obtained by NBC4 Washington.
The internal document reportedly described the incident’s “complainant” or victim as “Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) 88 years old, Black Woman, suffers early stages of dementia.”
The Democrat personally allowed the group claiming to be HVAC personnel into her home in D.C.’s Southeast quadrant, according to the outlet. An unspecified amount of time later, a person identified on the report as Norton’s “caretaker/power of attorney” spotted the supposed cleaning crew on a doorbell camera.
That supposed caretaker, identified as Jaqueline Pelt on a separate public incident report, was reportedly not at the delegate’s residence when she first spotted the strange individuals on camera. Pelt then left to go there, realizing Norton’s card had been charged, after which she notified police, according to the outlet.
An arrest was not made following the incident, NBC4 Washington reported.
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) lists Pelt as the treasurer for Citizens for Eleanor Holmes Norton, the principal campaign committee supporting the 18-term D.C. delegate’s 2026 reelection bid. Pelt is also Norton’s longtime friend and supporter, according to NBC4 Washington.
Norton’s office denied that the elderly Democrat has a caretaker but did not directly answer the question of whether she had been diagnosed with the “early stages of dementia,” the outlet reported.
“The medical diagnosis included in the police report was based on an assumption the reporting officer was unqualified to make,” a spokesperson for the delegate told NBC4 Washington in a statement. The spokesperson, however, still declined to confirm or deny the diagnosis was accurate, noting the congressional office does not comment on matters of Norton’s health.
“Congresswoman Norton doesn’t have a caretaker. A longtime employee and friend serves as the house manager, residing at a separate address,” the statement to NBC4 Washington continued. The manager reportedly “oversees all maintenance services, so [Norton] initially assumed her staff had arranged the visit and provided her credit card for payment.”
“Upon notifying her house manager, who reviewed Ring doorbell footage and confirmed that no such appointment had been scheduled, the incident was immediately reported to the police,” the spokesperson reportedly continued.
Norton’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for additional comment.
Norton is the oldest member of the House and is several months older than Republican Kentucky Rep. Hal Rogers, 87, the lower chamber’s oldest voting member.
In September, Norton seemed to need assistance from a woman appearing to be a staffer to simply walk away from an outdoor podium. Norton had just given a speech blasting President Donald Trump for purportedly using “D.C. residents as props in a political play.”
“Yeah, I’m gonna run for re-election,” Norton told NBC News on June 25. The same day, a spokesperson from her office told Axios “no decision has been made” on the matter.
Norton raised just $3,000 for her reelection bid in the third fundraising quarter of 2025, Politico reported Oct. 8. She faces two high-profile challengers in the Democratic primary, Robert White and Brooke Pinto, who both serve on the D.C. Council. White notably served as the legislative counsel in Norton’s congressional office for several years.
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