Summary

Delaware is located in the Northeastern region of the USA with Dover as its capital.  John Carney (D) is Governor

The Delaware legislature has 56 Senate members and 180 House members.

OnAir Post: Delaware onAir

News

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Latest Delaware onAir News

The base content in each post in this Delaware onAir Hub has been updated as of 12/20/23. In addition to the eight posts on the home page, in depth posts on each US House member and posts on Delaware government and elections have been started. These posts have been shared with the US onAir Hub and will updated in the US onAir automatically when they are updated in this hub.

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About

 

The Delaware onAir Hub supports Delawarans to become more informed about and engaged in local, state, and federal politics while facilitating more civil and positive discussions with their representatives, candidates, and fellow citizens.

  • DelawareonAir is one of 50 state governance and elections hubs that the US onAir Network is providing to help reinvigorate US democracy.  This post has short summaries of current state and federal representatives with links to their complete Hub posts.  Students curate post content from government, campaign, social media, and public websites.  Key content on the DelawareHub is also replicated on the US onAir nations Hub at: us.onair.cc.
  • Delaware students will be forming onAir chapters in their colleges and universities to help curate Hub content.  As more students participate and more onAir chapters are started, we will expand to include more state and local content as well as increase the number of aircasts – student-led, livestreamed, online discussions with candidates, representatives, and the public.

Find out more about Who Represents Me in Delaware
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Web Links

State Representatives

 

OfficeNamePartyAssumed officeNext electionTerm limitedMaximum term length
GovernorJohn CarneyDemocraticJanuary 17, 20172024YesTwo lifetime terms
Lieutenant GovernorBethany Hall-LongDemocraticJanuary 17, 20172024NoNo limits
Attorney GeneralKathy JenningsDemocraticJanuary 1, 20192022NoNo limits
TreasurerColleen DavisDemocraticJanuary 1, 20192022NoNo limits
Auditor of AccountsKathy McGuinessDemocraticJanuary 1, 20192022NoNo limits
Commissioner of InsuranceTrinidad NavarroDemocraticJanuary 17, 20172024NoNo limit

Governor John Carney

John Carney 1Current Position: Governor since 2017
Affiliation: Democrat
Former Positions: US Representative from 2011 – 2017; Lt. Governor from 2001 – 2009

Carney served as Deputy Chief Administrative Officer of New Castle County and as Secretary of Finance and Deputy Chief of Staff for Governor Tom Carper. In 2002 he launched the education initiative “Models of Excellence in Education” to identify practices in schools that have raised student achievement.

Carney has long been an advocate for wellness issues in Delaware, sponsoring “BeHealthy Delaware” and “The Lt. Governor’s Challenge” to encourage Delawareans to be more active and address the state’s high rate of chronic disease.

Featured Quote: 
In Lewes today to sign the Clean Water for Delaware Act and to announce a plan to address wastewater and drinking water issues in underserved communities throughout #Delaware. Watch live

OnAir Post: John Carney – DE

US Representatives

Senator Tom Carper

Tom Carper 1Current Position: US Senator since 2001
Affiliation: Democrat
Former Positions: Governor from 1993 – 2001; US Representative from 1983 – 1993; Treasurer of Delaware from 1977 – 1983
Other positions: Chair, Committee on Environment and Public Works (Chairman)
Chair, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

Featured Quote: 
I’m glad the issues in Newark are on the road to being resolved, but more must be done. Our communities rely on the Postal Service — that’s why we must work on protecting, strengthening, and reforming USPS so it can serve our neighborhoods, our families, and future generations.

OnAir Post: Tom Carper – DE

Senator Chris Coons

Chris Coons 1Current Position: US Senator since 2010
Affiliation: Democrat
Former Position: Other from 2001 – 2010
Other positions:  Chair, Select Committee on Ethics
Chair, Subcommittee on the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
Chair,  Subcommittee on Intellectual Property

Featured Quote: 
We can and should put Americans to work building resilience to climate change. That’s why we are working on launching a new Civilian Climate Corps – expanding and diversifying the vision of AmeriCorps today.

OnAir Post: Chris Coons – DE

Lisa Blunt Rochester DE-01

Lisa Blunt Rochester 1Current Position: US Representative of DE At-Large since 2017
Affiliation: Democrat
Former Position: DE Secretary of Labor from 1988 – 2001
Upcoming Election: Blunt Rochester has announced her candidacy to represent Delaware in the United States Senate in the 2024 election

Featured Quote: 
Direct relief for families in the midst of a pandemic shouldn’t be a partisan issue. That’s why I’m introducing the Coronavirus Assistance for American Families Act w/ @RepMcKinley to provide $1,400 for individuals and an additional $1,400 for dependents.

OnAir Post: Lisa Blunt Rochester DE-01

More Information

Wikipedia


The Government of Delaware encompasses the administrative structure of the US state of Delaware as established by its 1897 constitution. Analogously to the US federal government, it is composed of three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The Governor is head of the executive, the General Assembly is the legislature, and the Supreme Court is the highest court. The state is also organized into counties, municipalities, school districts, and special districts.

Executive branch

The executive branch is headed by the Governor of Delaware. The present governor is John Carney (D), who took office on January 17, 2017. The Lieutenant Governor is Bethany Hall-Long (D). The Attorney General is Kathy Jennings (D) since 2019. The Treasurer is Colleen Davis (D) since 2019. The Auditor is Lydia York (D) since 2023. The Insurance Commissioner is Trinidad Navarro (D).

The governor presents a “State of the State” speech to a joint session of the Delaware legislature annually.[1]

Legislative branch

The Delaware General Assembly meets in the Legislative Hall in Dover.

The Delaware General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Delaware Senate with 21 senators and the Delaware House of Representatives with 41 representatives. It meets at Legislative Hall in Dover, Delaware, convening on the second Tuesday of January of odd-numbered years, with a second session of the same Assembly convening likewise in even-numbered years. Normally the sessions are required to adjourn by the last day of June of the same calendar year. However, the Governor can call a special session of the legislature at any time.

Members are elected from single-member districts, all apportioned to roughly equal populations after each decennial Census. Elections are held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November and about one-half of the Senate is elected every two years for a four-year term, and the entire House of Representatives is elected every two years for a two-year term. Vacancies are filled through special elections. There are no term limits for either chamber.

With 62 seats, the Delaware General Assembly is the second-smallest bicameral state legislature in the United States – ahead of Alaska (60 seats) and behind Nevada (63). The Senate confirms judicial and other nominees appointed by the governor. It is the only legislature with the power to unilaterally amend its constitution without requiring a referendum or any other approval.[2]

Delaware’s U.S. Senators are Tom Carper (D) and Chris Coons (D). Delaware’s at-large U.S. Representative is Lisa Blunt Rochester (D).

Judicial branch

The Delaware Constitution establishes a number of courts:

Minor non-constitutional courts include the Justice of the Peace Courts and Aldermen’s Courts.

Significantly, Delaware has one of the few remaining Courts of Chancery in the nation, which has jurisdiction over equity cases, the vast majority of which are corporate disputes, many relating to mergers and acquisitions. The Court of Chancery and the Delaware Supreme Court have developed a worldwide reputation for rendering concise opinions concerning corporate law which generally (but not always) grant broad discretion to corporate boards of directors and officers. In addition, the Delaware General Corporation Law, which forms the basis of the Courts’ opinions, is widely regarded as giving great flexibility to corporations to manage their affairs. For these reasons, Delaware is considered to have the most business-friendly legal system in the United States; therefore a great number of companies are incorporated in Delaware, including 60% of the companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange.[3]

As of 2023, there are a total of 105 judicial off Delaware Courts.

Delaware was the last U.S. state to use judicial corporal punishment, in 1952.[4]

Counties

Delaware is subdivided into three counties; from north to south they are New Castle, Kent and Sussex. This is the fewest among all states. Each county elects its own legislative body (known in New Castle and Sussex counties as County Council, and in Kent County as Levy Court), which deal primarily in zoning and development issues. Most functions which are handled on a county-by-county basis in other states—such as court and law enforcement—have been centralized in Delaware, leading to a significant concentration of power in the Delaware state government. The counties were historically divided into hundreds, which were used as tax reporting and voting districts until the 1960s, but now serve no administrative role, their only current official legal use being in real estate title descriptions.[5]

References

  1. ^ “Delaware House of Representatives Minority Caucus”. 2010. Archived from the original on April 16, 2009. Retrieved January 24, 2001.
  2. ^ “ARTICLE. XVI AMENDMENTS AND CONVENTIONS”. delcode.delaware.gov. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  3. ^ “About Agency”. Delaware Division of Corporations. Archived from the original on February 28, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2008.
  4. ^ Pleck, Elizabeth Hefkin (2004). Domestic tyranny: the making of American social policy against family. University of Illinois Press. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-252-07175-1. Archived from the original on December 31, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  5. ^ “The Hundreds of Delaware”. Department of State: Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs. Delaware State Archives. Archived from the original on June 17, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2010.

Further reading