Politics of Delaware

Due to the state's small size (45th of 50 by population in 2006), the politics of Delaware tend to be less convoluted and controversial than those in neighboring states. Nonetheless, Delaware's political status quo reflects the state's long history of political clout dating from the earliest days of the United States, some of which remains today.

Gubernatorial election results[1]
Year Democratic Republican
1952 47.9% 81,772 52.1% 88,977
1956 48.1% 85,047 52.0% 91,965
1960 51.7% 100,792 48.3% 94,043
1964 51.4% 102,797 48.7% 97,374
1968 49.5% 102,360 50.5% 104,474
1972 51.3% 117,274 47.9% 109,583
1976 42.5% 97,480 56.9% 130,531
1980 28.5% 64,217 70.7% 159,004
1984 44.5% 108,315 55.5% 135,250
1988 29.3% 70,236 70.7% 169,733
1992 64.7% 179,365 32.8% 90,725
1996 69.5% 188,300 30.5% 82,564
2000 59.2% 191,695 39.8% 128,603
2004 50.9% 185,548 45.8% 167,008
2008 67.5% 266,861 32.0% 126,662
2012 69.3% 275,993 28.6% 113,793
2016 58.3% 248,404 39.2% 166,852
2020 59.5% 292,903 38.6% 190,312
Presidential election results[1]
Year Democratic Republican
1952 47.9% 83,315 51.8% 90,059
1956 44.6% 79,421 55.1% 98,057
1960 50.6% 99,590 49.0% 96,373
1964 61.0% 122,704 38.8% 78,078
1968 41.6% 89,194 45.1% 96,714
1972 39.2% 92,283 59.6% 140,357
1976 52.0% 122,596 46.6% 109,831
1980 44.9% 105,754 47.2% 111,252
1984 39.9% 101,656 59.8% 152,190
1988 43.5% 108,647 55.9% 139,639
1992 43.5% 126,054 35.3% 102,313
1996 51.8% 140,355 36.6% 99,062
2000 55.0% 180,068 41.9% 137,288
2004 53.4% 200,152 45.8% 171,660
2008 61.9% 255,459 36.9% 152,374
2012 58.6% 242,584 40.0% 165,484
2016 53.1% 235,603 41.7% 185,127
2020 58.8% 296,268 39.8% 200,603

Major issues

Delaware residents as a group tend to vote toward the conservative side of moderate on fiscal and economic issues, and are more moderate on social issues. Social liberalism is generally concentrated in the northern part of the state, and conservatism is more prevalent in the less heavily populated central and southern regions. Some of the wealthiest neighborhoods around Wilmington (in the north) as well as a few of the more progressive beach towns (in the south) serve as exceptions to this general trend. Politicians of both major parties tend to vote consistently in favor of big business, a very important sector of Delaware's economy.

Matters of perennial statewide debate tend to include taxation (which runs relatively low compared to other northeastern states); the needs and demands of Delaware's massive business community; education (Delaware's educational spending per student remains low); increasing stress on the environment; urban development and sprawl; the needs of an increasingly diverse population; large income disparities between wealthy and disadvantaged areas; and a perceived disconnect between the rural central and southern areas of the state and Wilmington and the urbanized corridor in the north, home to the bulk of the state's population.

National office holders

Delaware's situation with respect to the Presidential Primary Election changed between 2000 and 2008.[2] Delaware's Primary is held "on the first Tuesday in February in the calendar year of a presidential election."[3] In 2000, Delaware was the sole state to have a primary on February 1, while in 2004 it was one of five states with primaries on February 3.[2] In the 2008 primaries, Delaware shared February 5 with 23 other states on "Super Tuesday (2008)", the largest group of simultaneous primary races in the history of the United States.[2][4] Being the first Primary in the nation increases the influence of a state disproportionately in determining who the contestants will be in the general presidential election. However, as other states change the dates of their primaries, influence is inevitably decreased.[2]

Delaware's senators in the United States Senate are Chris Coons and Tom Carper, both Democrats. Delaware's sole representative in the United States House of Representatives is Lisa Blunt Rochester, a Democrat.

Statewide office holders

The current governor of Delaware is John C. Carney Jr., a Democrat currently serving his second term.

Delaware's Attorney General is Kathy Jennings.

See also

References
  1. Leip, David. "General Election Results – Delaware". Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  2. Beth Miller (January 13, 2008). "Dela-where? Campaigns bypass First State". The News Journal. Retrieved January 13, 2008. ...it did have an early Republican primary all to itself in 2000, when it provided George W. Bush with his first primary win. In 2004, Delaware shared its primary day with four other states. And now, it is shoehorned into a virtual phone booth.
  3. "Presidential Primary Election". Online Delaware Code. State of Delaware. January 1, 2008. Retrieved January 13, 2008. ...a presidential primary election for major political parties shall be conducted on the first Tuesday in February in the calendar year of a presidential election.
  4. Richard Allen Greene (May 30, 2007). "States jostle for primary power". Washington: BBC News. Retrieved January 13, 2008. The US has had "Super Tuesdays" in the past ... (b)ut it has never seen anything like what is shaping up for February 5, 2008 – which some wits are calling "Super Duper Tuesday".
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