Why Should Delaware Care?
Republicans in Delaware have struggled for more than a decade even as their counterparts nationally have succeeded. The party has identified fundraising as the way to regain a foothold, but campaign finance filings show deteriorating situation for the party’s state committee.
Delaware’s long-struggling Republican Party faces a money problem just as it approaches a consequential midterm election year.
The state party reported last month that its federal bank account held a balance of negative $3,819 – the fourth month in a row it sat in the red.
It is not immediately clear how the party can maintain an overdrawn account for so many months, nor is it known how much money the party may hold in any other account.
State GOP officials did not respond to multiple requests to comment for this story.
What is known is that the depletion of its federal account comes amid a transition period for a party that seeks to regain relevance in a state long controlled by Democrats.
It also comes a year after the party took in a hefty campaign season haul that included tens of thousands of dollars earned for serving as a pass-through entity for a super PAC backing President Donald Trump.
After the haul, the party spent heavily on payments to consultants, on cash transfers to certain general election candidates, and on hotels and events, including a single $54,000 payment to the hotel chain Homewood Suites, according to federal filings.
Precise details of the spending is not shown on the filings, but social media posts show that then-chair Julianne Murray traveled widely last year for Republican events in Nevada, Arizona, Wisconsin, Georgia and Washington, D.C.
Following the publication of this story, State GOP chairman Gene Truono sent an email to members of his party, in which he stated that the payment to Homewood Suites was “a joint expense for lodging for our delegates attending the Republican National Convention.”
He also asserted that “like many small organizations and small businesses across our state, the Delaware GOP has faced challenges during an off-election year.”
In recent months, the party’s spending from the depleted account has been more routine, with payments to the State of Delaware for business taxes, and paychecks to an executive assistant. The one exception has been the party’s periodic payments for what it calls “legal consulting” to a limited liability company owned by the state GOP’s own executive director, Ayonne “Nick” Miles.
Since early 2024, the state GOP has paid the company nearly $100,000 – from both its federal and state accounts, according to campaign finance records.
Miles also serves on the Smyrna Town Council. He is not a Delaware barred attorney.
In his email to party members, Truono said payments to the company is how the party compensates Miles.
“There is nothing unusual or improper about this structure,” Truono said.
‘Lead us to victory’
The overdrawn account balance first appeared in August, just after Truono, who previously served as the party’s treasurer, became its new chairman.
With a past career in finance and tech, including as an executive at PayPal, Truono was widely seen as a pragmatic leader who could supplement the more staunchly partisan styles of others within the party, including that of his predecessor, Murray.
Murray, a longtime supporter of President Trump who earned his endorsement to remain party chair earlier this year amid challengers, was tapped by Trump in July to become interim U.S. attorney for Delaware.
Shortly before that, the state GOP paid her $5,000 as an apparent reimbursement, described in campaign finance records as “office supplies.”
In the email to party members, Truono described the payment as a reimbursement for a “deposit of our 2025 Convention at the Chase Center on the Riverfront.”
Months later when party officials announced the appointment of Truono as chair, they posted a tweet declaring that he would “unite Republicans, grow our grassroots and lead us to victory.”
The post highlighted how Truono’s challenge went beyond finances. In past years, infighting had plagued the party as it suffered continuous defeats at the statewide level.
Democrats have held all statewide elected positions in Delaware since 2018 when Colleen Davis beat the state’s incumbent treasurer, Republican Ken Simpler
While Truono did not comment for this story, he said in an interview in August with Spotlight Delaware that he was pursuing a fundraising strategy focused on wealthy donors in coordination with the Republican National Committee.
“We need the money obviously to do the communication, and we need the money to do registration, and recruitment for Republicans,” he said.
Under Truono, the party may also be shifting away from its focus on national politics. A recent GOP fundraising email leaned into the party’s stances on a litany of local controversies, including state control over land-use decisions,
“The Delaware Republican Party is seeking your financial support to push back against the Democrats’ extreme policies,” the email stated.
In September, the party received $5,000 checks from the Republican National Committee and from the Georgia Republican Party, according to campaign finance records. The Delaware GOP has also borrowed $10,000 from TD Bank this year.
An unknown LLC
The Republican Party’s biggest expense this year has been its regular payments to a company listed on its monthly campaign finance reports as Red Vigiant LLC. The company name appears to be a misspelling of the company Red Vigilant LLC.
While no records of a Red Vigiant exist – either online or in state business records – Delaware Department of State records show a Red Vigilant LLC.
That company’s registration lists Miles, the state GOP’s executive director, as its sole member. The documents also link the company to Miles’ address at a home in Smyrna.
Separately, the GOP’s campaign finance filings list that same Smyrna address as belonging to Red Vigiant LLC.
The GOP’s payments to Red Vigiant, which have totaled nearly $100,000 since the beginning of 2024, are for “legal consulting,” according to the campaign finance documents. Miles is not admitted to the Delaware bar, according to online records.
Reporter Ethan Grandin contributed to this story.