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Delaware State Senate District 15
Delaware State Senate District 15 is represented by David G. Lawson (R).
As of the 2020 Census, Delaware state senators represented an average of 47,183 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 42,899 residents.
About the office
Members of the Delaware State Senate serve both two- and four-year terms and are not subject to term limits.[1] Delaware legislators assume office the first Wednesday after the first Monday in November (the day after election day).[2][3]
Qualifications
Article II, Section 3 of the Delaware Constitution states: "No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained the age of twenty-seven years and have been a citizen and inhabitant of the State three years next preceding the day of his or her election and the last year of that term an inhabitant of the Senatorial District in which he or she shall be chosen, unless he or she shall have been absent on the public business of the United States or of this State."[4]
Salaries
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2025[5] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $51,692/year | No per diem is paid. |
Vacancies
If there is a vacancy in the Delaware General Assembly, the presiding officer of the house in which the vacancy happens must call for a special election within 10 days of the creation of the vacancy. The election must be called for no less than 30 days but no more than 35 days after the writ for the special election has been issued. The governor may issue a writ if the legislature is not in session.[6]
See sources: Delaware Code Ann. tit. 15, § 7101
2016 pivot county
This district was one of 710 state legislative districts that, based on boundaries adopted after the 2010 census, intersected with one or more Pivot Counties. These 206 Pivot Counties voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012.
The 206 Pivot Counties were located in 34 states. Iowa, with 31, had the most such counties. At that time, the partisan makeup of state legislative districts intersecting with Pivot Counties was slightly more Republican than the overall partisan makeup of state legislatures throughout the country.[7]
District map
Redistricting
2020 redistricting cycle
On November 2, 2021, Gov. John Carney (D) signed Senate Bill 199 into law, enacting the state's new House and Senate district lines.[8] The Delaware General Assembly previously approved the final House and Senate map proposals on November 1, 2021.[9] The Delaware House of Representatives voted 40-1 in favor of the maps with state Rep. Michael Smith (R) voting against it. The Delaware State Senate approved the maps along party lines with all 14 Democrats in favor and all seven Republicans against.[9] These maps took effect for Delaware's 2022 legislative elections.
How does redistricting in Delaware work? Because Delaware has only one congressional district, congressional redistricting is not necessary. The state legislature draws state legislative district lines. The governor may veto the lines drawn by the state legislature.[10][11]
State law requires that state legislative districts be "insofar as possible, contiguous and bounded by roads, streams and other natural boundaries." Further, state law stipulates that district lines "may not be drawn to unduly favor any person or political party." Because these requirements are statutory, the legislature may amend them at its discretion.[10][11]
Delaware State Senate District 15
until November 8, 2022
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Delaware State Senate District 15
starting November 9, 2022
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Elections
2026
See also: Delaware State Senate elections, 2026
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
2022
- See also: Delaware State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Delaware State Senate District 15
Incumbent David G. Lawson won election in the general election for Delaware State Senate District 15 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | David G. Lawson (R) | 100.0 | 11,814 |
| Total votes: 11,814 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent David G. Lawson advanced from the Republican primary for Delaware State Senate District 15.
2020
- See also: Delaware State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Delaware State Senate District 15
Incumbent David G. Lawson defeated Jacqueline Hugg in the general election for Delaware State Senate District 15 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | David G. Lawson (R) | 55.3 | 14,587 |
 | Jacqueline Hugg (D) | 44.7 | 11,773 | |
| Total votes: 26,360 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Jacqueline Hugg advanced from the Democratic primary for Delaware State Senate District 15.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent David G. Lawson advanced from the Republican primary for Delaware State Senate District 15.
2016
- See also: Delaware State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Delaware State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on September 13, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was July 12, 2016.
Incumbent David G. Lawson ran unopposed in the Delaware State Senate District 15 general election.[12][13]
| Delaware State Senate, District 15 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  David G. Lawson Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 15,036 | |
| Total Votes | 15,036 | |||
| Source: Delaware Department of Elections | ||||
Incumbent David G. Lawson ran unopposed in the Delaware State Senate District 15 Republican primary.[14][15][12]
| Delaware State Senate, District 15 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | David G. Lawson Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2012
- See also: Delaware State Senate elections, 2012
Elections for the office of Delaware State Senate consisted of a primary election on February 11, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 6, 2012. Incumbent David G. Lawson (R) defeated Catherine Samardza (I) and Kathleen Cooke (D) in the general election. The candidates ran unopposed in the February 7 primary elections.[16] [17]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Dave Lawson Incumbent |
50.6% | 9,547 | |
| Democratic | Kathleen Cooke | 47.7% | 9,004 | |
| Independent | Catherine Samardza | 1.7% | 324 | |
| Total Votes | 18,875 | |||
Campaign contributions
From 2000 to 2022, candidates for Delaware State Senate District 15 raised a total of $546,140. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $36,409 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money
| Campaign contributions, Delaware State Senate District 15 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average |
| 2022 | $11,300 | 1 | $11,300 |
| 2020 | $143,006 | 2 | $71,503 |
| 2016 | $60,083 | 1 | $60,083 |
| 2012 | $74,785 | 4 | $18,696 |
| 2010 | $95,943 | 2 | $47,972 |
| 2006 | $41,625 | 1 | $41,625 |
| 2002 | $7,100 | 1 | $7,100 |
| 2000 | $112,298 | 3 | $37,433 |
| Total | $546,140 | 15 | $36,409 |
See also
- Delaware State Legislature
- Delaware State Senate
- Delaware House of Representatives
- Delaware state legislative districts
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Delaware State Legislature, "Delaware State Senate," accessed December 16, 2013
- ↑ Delaware Constitution, "Article II, Section 3," accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ Delaware Constitution, "Article II, Section 4," accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ The Delaware Code Online, "Article II. Legislature - Section 3," accessed May 21, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2025 Legislator Compensation," December 2, 2025
- ↑ Delaware Legislature, "Delaware Election Code," accessed May 22, 2014 (Statutes § 7101 and § 7104, Delaware Code)
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
- ↑ Delaware General Assembly, "Senate Bill 199," accessed Nov. 15, 2021
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 WGMD, "Redistricting Legislation Passes in Delaware – Waiting for Governor’s Signature," Nov. 1, 2021
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 All About Redistricting, "Delaware," accessed April 22, 2015
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Delaware Code, "Title 29, Chapter 8," accessed April 22, 2015
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Delaware.gov, "General election candidates," accessed September 27, 2016 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "glist16" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Delaware Department of Elections, "General Election (Official Results)," accessed November 23, 2016
- ↑ Delaware.gov, "Primary election candidates," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Delaware Department of Elections, Primary Election (Official Returns)," accessed September 22, 2016
- ↑ Delaware Secretary of State, "2012 General Election," November 4, 2013
- ↑ Delaware Secretary of State, "2012 General Primary,” November 4, 2013
