The D.C. City Council in its wisdom passed The Fair Elections Amendment Act of 2018 to provide public funds (taxpayer money) to those who decide to run for office in the District.
Those eligible to participate in the program are candidates for Mayor, Attorney General, Chairman and Members of the Council, At-Large and Ward (13), and Members of the State Board of Education (9).
This public money is available for both primaries and the general election. From what I have observed it is a generous program and fairly easy for candidates to access, maybe even too easy to qualify for.
Recently, a candidate who announced as an independent for a Ward Council seat tweeted he qualified for the program within 11 hours.