Ballotpedia's 2012 General Election Preview Articles: Delaware State Legislature
October 29, 2012
By Ballotpedia's State legislative team
| Delaware's State Legislative Elections in 2012 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate seats | Contested senate seats | House seats | Contested house seats |
| 21 | 19 (90.47%) | 41 | 34 (82.92%) |
Dover: Delaware: There are 62 total legislative seats with 2012 elections in Delaware, where polling places are open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm, Eastern Time. If you are in line waiting to vote at closing time, you may cast your vote even if it is done after 8:00 pm.[1]
Both the House and the Senate are overwhelmingly Democratic, and are unlikely to change hands in 2012. Going into the election, the Democratic Party held a 14-7 majority in the Senate and a 26-15 majority in the House.
Of the 62 incumbents up for election in 2012, 53 (85.48%) of them are running for re-election. A total of 24 of 62 (38.71%) districts will see more than one major party candidate in the general election.
Here are a few races to watch:
Senate
- District 4: Freshman Democratic state senator Michael Katz is being challenged by state representative and Republican Minority Leader Gregory Lavelle. This is a district which has always had a Republican registration plurality, and still does even after redistricting by the Democratic controlled state legislature following the 2010 census.[2]
- District 6: Republican Ernie Lopez faces off against Democrat Andrew Staton. Both candidates had to win their nominations in contested primaries and even though there's a slight Republican edge in the district, Lopez's primary victory over Tea Party favorite Glen Urquhart was both close and heated, which could affect turnout for this race.[2]
- District 12: 16-year incumbent Republican state senator Dorinda Connor, age 65, is being challenged by Democratic candidate Nicole Poore, age 39. The age contrast in this race is striking, but it's hard to predict which candidate will benefit from it.[2]
House
- District 10: Incumbent Dennis E. Williams (D) faces Republican challenger Robert M. Rhodunda. The two term incumbent faces significant opposition from the Republican party in the race for the district seat.[3]
- District 29: Challenger William C. Paradee III (D) is taking on incumbent Lincoln D. Willis (R). Although Willis "coasted" into this seat in 2010, the Democrats are making a run with Paradee, who sat out in 2010, but nearly won the seat in 2008.[3]
- District 37: Incumbent Ruth Briggs King (R) faces challenger Elizabeth E. McGinn (D). King faces less of a certain advantage in the election after redistricting following the 2010 census.[3]
| Delaware State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 14 | 13 | |
| Republican Party | 7 | 8 | |
| Total | 21 | 21 | |
| Delaware House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 26 | 27 | |
| Republican Party | 15 | 14 | |
| Total | 41 | 41 | |
Articles
- 2012 elections review: Delaware voters choose winners in congressional, legislative primaries September 12
- 2012 elections preview: Delaware voters to select winners in congressional, legislative primaries September 10
See also
- Ballotpedia's 2012 General Election Preview Articles: Delaware Congressional Seats
- Ballotpedia's 2012 General Election Preview Articles: Delaware State Executive Officials
- Ballotpedia:2012 general election preview articles
- State legislative elections, 2012
- November 6, 2012 election results
- Delaware elections, 2012
Footnotes
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