State Representative Kimberly Williams (D-19RD) has a primary opponent. Why? Kim Williams is one of the more progressive members of the General Assembly, and focuses on educational issues in much of her work. But I am not aware of any major apostasy on her part that should garner her a challenge. She is no Andria Bennett, who voted against taxes on the wealthy, thus guaranteeing cuts to needed social services. She is no Brian Bushweller, who voted against the minimum wage increase*. She is no Bob Marshall, who forced a bill to raise the minimum age to buy a gun to be tabled last week.
But whatever, we live in a democracy, and Megan O’Donnell is free to run for whatever office she is eligible to run for. Visit her site at the link there and find out more about her.
We have more candidates in the Democratic primary for State Auditor and still no candidates for State Treasurer. The new candidate is Jason Hortiz, who ran unsuccessfully for State Representative in the 9th RD a couple of years ago. Anyone want to run for Treasurer? Anyone? Hey, Kathy McGuiness, it doesn’t matter if you were or are friends with Ken Simpler. You can still run against him.
In the 5th RD, we now that three candidates running to replace Melanie George Smith: Deneice Berry, Kendra Johnson, and Aja Ajavon. Deneice Berry is a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for children in family court and has served as a Chairwoman of the 5th RD Democratic Committee. Aja Ajavon has worked for Delaware Family Court as a mediation and arbitration officer and in nearly the same positions for the New Jersey Superior Court Family Division. She also teaches at Wilmington University in the College of Social and Behavioral Science and is a volunteer mediator at Delaware Center for Justice. Kendra Johnson served on the Bear Crossing Maintenance Corporation board since 2011 and is currently serving as the Board President of the Ability Network of Delaware, formerly known as DelARF, which is an advocacy group focused on nonprofit providers of Human Services.
In the 7th RD, we have two candidates running to replace Bryon Short: Joe Daigle, who ran for this seat briefly in 2016 when Short was running for Congress, and he is currently an Investment Analyst at Mallard Financial Partners and the President of the Delaware Stonewall Democrats, and an instructor at the George Parks Drum Major Academy; and Raymond Seigfried. Mr. Seigfried is a faculty member at Arcadia University, a former Senior Vice President at Christiana Care, a former board member and Chairman of the Wilmington Charter School and a volunteer and board member of the Wilmington HOPE Commission.
In the 9th RD, we also have a three candidate primary between Monique Johns, Debbie Harrington, and Jim Ryan. Jim Ryan is the President of the Local 13101 Chapter of the Communication Workers of America union. Monique Johns was the 2016 nominee for this seat, and a current Department of Labor employee, and a volunteer at the Middletown Senior Center and the women’s prison, and she has her own organization, “Living Outside the Walls (LOW),” which seeks to provide necessary life skills training for women inmates so that they can become productive members of society. Debbie Harrington is a retired U.S. Army Colonel, a former Church Administrator, and a current Deputy Director in the Division for the Visually Impaired where she has embarked on reforming education and employment services.
In the 16th RD, we now have three candidates running to replace the irreplaceable JJ Johnson. Linwood Jackson, who is a radio and television host as well as the President of the Delaware NAACP. Jakim Mohammed, is a retired New York police officer and the Chairman of the 16th RD Democratic committee. Franklin D. Cooke, Jr. is a retired New Castle County police officer. I haven’t found any campaign or Facebook page for him yet, so I don’t know much about him.
Downstate, we have some new stepping up to run. Attorney Meghan Kelly is running in the 38th RD against State Representative Ron Gray. In the 34th RD, we have Adewunmi Kuforiji running against incumbent Republican Lyndon Yearick. Mr. Kuforiji has been the Chief Financial Officer and Business Manager at the Lake Forest School District and the Capital School District. He has also worked for the Department of Education.
So here is our updated list of candidates. If a seat is highlighted in yellow, it is an open seat. Yes, yes, Senator Bob Marshall has not yet officially retired, but given his actions in the General Assembly last week, he has no chance to win the primary and he just has not realized yet that he will retire rather than face defeat in the primary.
* Technically Bushweller did not vote, though he was present and though he spoke against the increase. We at Blue Delaware consider that cowardly and petty move to be a No vote.
Can’t we find a female military veteran to run against Colin Bonini?
Jakim Mohammed was out in the street today demonstrating again the Rodney Sq bus hub changes. Then he lead the group to the Purzycki/BPG presser on 9th and Shipley.
Coverage by Christina Jedra of the News Journal.
The thing actually drew a big police presence downtown from the library to the new construction site. Anytime BPG feels heat their auxillary guards at WPD come out of the woodwork.
If you want to know what Jakim is about, that’s it.
I’ve told him in person he’s the only ex-cop that gets our support. Top bloke.
Jackie missed originally from Brooklyn, and seems very pensive I think he is left of the Delaware way.
You have Jaques down as an R
And Viola. Thanks, fixed it.
Common mistake.
So… 21 unopposed Dems and 14 unapposed Trumpicans. Not bad. But I’m shocked to see the Trumpicans giving LBR a free pass. And I’m sickened to see the Dems giving Ivy Legacy Affirmative Action , Ken Simpler a pass.
It’s still relatively early in the calendar, but successful campaigns, like hopefully those of Don Allan, Laura Sturgeon, Elizabeth Lockman, Krista Griffith and Rachel Blumenfeld, have been out there for a while working the voters. Which is what you have to do.
I believe Jim Ryan ran for the RD primary senate position last year for Hanson,s seat. he struck me as less corporate more Everyman/woman canidate. Came out fairly progressive on issues.
Two cops vs the President of the NAACP in RD16, seems like a pretty easy choice
“Can’t we find a female military veteran to run against Colin Bonini?”
Typical hack-Democrat thinking. Who cares what she actually stands for, amirite? The important thing is just win, baby. Which I suppose it is if your job depends on electing malleable legislators.
“Typical hack-Democrat thinking. Who cares what she actually stands for, amirite?” – Alby
As if you care what that hack-Democrat, Nancy Pelosi, actually stands for.
There’s a difference between an incumbent and a non-existent candidate. Let’s see if you can figure out what it is.
Also, too, caring what she stand for and calling for her replacement are two different positions. Let’s see if you can figure out that difference, either. History says you can’t, possibly because they don’t teach them in Russia. You’re a Greenie, right? Fake progressives at this point.
I may have that Green part wrong, of course. I don’t know anything about you except your onanism.
Fine Alby. Find me a progressive to run for that seat then. You know, concerns about resume/backgrounds are legitimate. You purists constantly condemn candidates who espouse progressive policies yet have a lawyer / corporate background. So obviously you are concerned about resume and backgrounds too, not just their stated policies.
Nope. I’m concerned about someone conjuring up the resume a candidate needs and then recruits a candidate to fit. Just what I would expect of a JP.
Lawyers who espouse progressive policies but then waffle when it’s time to act. Stated policies are worthless without action, which is why Baumbach and Townsend don’t cut the mustard for me. YMMV, and don’t pretend I speak for “you purists.” I’m no purist. I’m a realist. I just don’t listen to bullshit that people tell me to get on my good side. YMMV there, too.
Heard directly that Hortiz was very irritated this week over the fact the party leaders were trying to get everyone not named Kathy to run for something other than auditor.
“We all have 60+ years of combined experience and they want us to bail out for someone with none?!”
He is not wrong. Kathy McGuiness is a socialite looking for an elected position to justify her presence/existence at any number of political events up and down the state. She is not qualified. She is a Republican. She is a Utahn. Any party member or elected official pushing her candidacy should be ashamed of themselves.
They should be actively campaigned against, you mean. Or would that be wrong to do to quisling Democrats?
You see Alby, this is where your caricature of me fails. I oppose bad Democrats who make bad decisions. I am no party hack that blindly follows whatever Erik Raser Schramm or Pete Schwartzkopf tells me. I criticize Democrats all the fucking time. Andria Bennett. Bob Marshall. Bruce Ennis. We just differ on what defines quisling Democrats and to what degree they must be opposed, campaigned against, etc. Aside from John Kowalko, I think you view all Democrats as evil.
It’s a sliding scale. Nobody’s innocent, and most Republicans are worse than most Democrats. But yes, in my four decades of paying attention to Delaware politics, I would judge no more than 10% of those in office are devoted entirely to what we’d call public service. Most of them just need a job, and a fair percentage of those are on the lookout for extra sources of income, if you get my drift.
The “party hack” line is about people who back Bruce Ennis because he’ll vote with the rest of the real Democrats on the teachers union. Ennis is no Democrat. He’s a Dixiecrat who was too involved with the party to switch to the GOP. Indeed, Delaware as usual is way behind the times. We still have Dixiecrats, and the pull they exert on the party is why we have wall-to-wall Democrats and almost no liberals.