In a sign of troubled times to come for the D.C. City Council, first term council-member Kwame Brown (D-At Large) has announced that he is endorsing council chair Linda Cropp in her run for mayor, notes the Examiner. In exchange for his support, Cropp has named Brown co-chair of her campaign.

This is significant on a number of fronts.

First off, since launching her campaign, Cropp has been seen as lacking the young blood that competitor Adrian Fenty (D-Ward 4) seems to have designed his campaign around. With the addition of the 35-year-old Brown to her team, Cropp can fully exploit the talents and energies of the man who unseated Post-endorsed incumbent Harold Brazil in 2004 by engaging in a year-long door-to-door campaign.

Second, this alignment will no doubt complicate internal politics within the council, which is currently struggling under the weight of three mayoral candidates and two council chair candidates in its ranks. If there was infighting before, it may soon get worse, and with Cropp having opened this can of worms, there is little doubt that both Fenty and remaining mayoral candidate Vincent Orange (D-Ward 5) will go fishing for endorsements of their own. Is this healthy for the city’s only legislative body?

Thirdly, and possibly most important, there is the question of what Brown stands to gain from siding with Cropp this early on. He’s clearly thrown his eggs all in one basket, a risky decision Fenty will probably choose not to forget should he emerge victorious next year. Cropp is obviously a powerful woman, so Brown stands to gain from this alliance in the short-term. But what exactly is it that he wants? No political favor goes unpaid, so the only question mark is what that payment will be.

Oh Kwame, you just better hope you made the right decision!