Why Should Delaware Care?
Senate seats vacated by two high-profile legislators are up for grabs this weekend. This weekend’s special election will set the tone for how Wilmington’s northernmost districts are represented in the state legislature for years to come.
Residents in two Wilmington-area Senate districts will vote on Saturday to fill seats vacated by Delaware lawmakers who each won elections for higher office last November.
The candidates seeking to replace U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride in Senate District 1 – which includes portions of Wilmington and unincorporated neighborhoods to its north – are Republican Steve Washington, Democrat Dan Cruce, and nonpartisan candidate Riley Figliola.
Candidates seeking to replace Lt. Gov. Kyle Evans Gay in Senate District 5 – which includes Claymont and Brandywine Hundred – are Democrat Ray Seigfried and Republican Brent Burdge.
The Democratic Party nominated its two candidates last fall in a process that outsiders claimed was marred by political jockeying and a lack of transparency.
Party leaders responded in a statement following the nominations, saying in part their process “offered more resident engagement than required by the law or Delaware Democratic Party rules.”
Because of Democrats’ hefty voter registration advantage in both senate districts, Cruce and Seigfried are the favorites to win the special elections.
Click here to see if your home is in the districts. For polling locations in Senate District 1, click here. Polling locations in Senate District 5 can be accessed here.
Polls will open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
Senate District 1
Cruce, an executive with United Way of Delaware, says on his campaign website that he wants to strengthen investments in early child education programs, Wilmington’s public schools, and raise teacher salaries.
He also lists women’s health and gun regulations among his policy priorities.
Washington, a special education teacher at Glasgow High School, says on his campaign website that his top priority is education reform. Two other issues of importance to Washington are prison reform and affordable housing, according to the website.
He also has served on Delaware’s Parole Board, which hears clemency petitions, and as a commissioner on the Wilmington Housing Authority.
Nonpartisan candidate Figliola says on her campaign website that she wants to strengthen Delaware as an tech and artificial intelligence innovation hub. She also says she wants lower health care costs.
During a recent interview with local podcast, Highlands Bunker, she also pointed to her dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party’s nomination process last fall as one reason she joined the race.
Senate District 5
Seigfried served in the Delaware House of Representatives from 2018 to 2020. He also worked in senior leadership with ChristianaCare – Delaware largest hospital system – for more than 25 years.
Seigfried says on his website that he supports affordable health care, reproductive rights and affordable housing.
His Republican opponent Burdge is a career DuPont employee. On his website, he lists his issues of top concern as supporting law enforcement, limiting government regulation on small businesses and increasing school effectiveness.
