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Delaware, Attorney General

Delaware held an election for attorney general on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was July 10, 2018.

SETTING THE STAGE
  • Heading into the election, the attorney general of Delaware was Matthew Denn (D), who was first elected in 2014. Denn announced on August 28, 2017, that he would not seek re-election in 2018, leaving the seat open.
  • In 2018, Delaware was under a Democratic trifecta. It had held this status since 2009, when the Democratic Party gained a majority in the Delaware House of Representatives. Delaware was also a Democratic triplex.
  • The Democratic candidate won Delaware in each of the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016. The widest margin of victory was Barack Obama's 25 percent margin in 2008, while the narrowest was John Kerry's 7.6 percent margin in 2004.
  • State election history

    This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Delaware from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Delaware State Department of Elections.

    Historical elections

    Presidential elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Delaware every year from 2000 to 2016.

    Election results (President of the United States), Delaware 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2016 Democratic Party Hillary Clinton 53.4% Republican Party Donald Trump 41.9% 11.5%
    2012 Democratic Party Barack Obama 58.6% Republican Party Mitt Romney 40.0% 18.6%
    2008 Democratic Party Barack Obama 61.9% Republican Party John McCain 36.9% 25.0%
    2004 Democratic Party John Kerry 53.4% Republican Party George W. Bush 45.7% 7.7%
    2000 Democratic Party Al Gore 54.9% Republican Party George W. Bush 41.9% 13.0%

    U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Delaware from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

    Election results (U.S. Senator), Delaware 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2014 Democratic Party Chris Coons 55.8% Republican Party Kevin Wade 42.2% 13.6%
    2012 Democratic Party Thomas Carper 66.4% Republican Party Kevin Wade 29.0% 37.4%
    2010 Democratic Party Chris Coons 56.6% Republican Party Christine O'Donnell 40.0% 16.6%
    2008 Democratic Party Joe Biden 64.7% Republican Party Christine O'Donnell 35.3% 29.4%
    2006 Democratic Party Tom Carper 67.1% Republican Party Jan Ting 27.4% 39.7%
    2002 Democratic Party Joe Biden 58.2% Republican Party Raymond Clatworthy 40.8% 17.4%
    2000 Democratic Party Tom Carper 55.5% Republican Party William Roth 43.7% 11.8%

    Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Delaware.

    Election results (Governor), Delaware 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2016 Democratic Party John Carney 58.3% Republican Party Colin Bonini 39.2% 19.9%
    2012 Democratic Party Jack Markell 69.3% Republican Party Jeff Cragg 28.6% 40.7%
    2008 Democratic Party Jack Markell 67.5% Republican Party William Swain Lee 32.0% 35.5%
    2004 Democratic Party Ruth Ann Minner 50.9% Republican Party William Swain Lee 45.8% 5.1%
    2000 Democratic Party Ruth Ann Minner 59.2% Republican Party John Burris 39.7% 19.5%

    Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Delaware in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

    Congressional delegation, Delaware 2000-2016

    Year Republicans Republicans (%) Democrats Democrats (%) Balance of power
    2016 Democratic Party 1 100% Republican Party 0 0% D+1
    2014 Democratic Party 1 100% Republican Party 0 0% D+1
    2012 Democratic Party 1 100% Republican Party 0 0% D+1
    2010 Democratic Party 1 100% Republican Party 0 0% D+1
    2008 Republican Party 1 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+1
    2006 Republican Party 1 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+1
    2004 Republican Party 1 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+1
    2002 Republican Party 1 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+1
    2000 Republican Party 1 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+1

    Trifectas, 1992-2017

    A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

    Delaware Party Control: 1992-2019
    11 years of Democratic trifectasNo Republican trifectas

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
    Governor R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
    Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
    House R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D


    Demographics

    Demographic data for Delaware

    DelawareU.S.
    Total population:944,076316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):1,9493,531,905
    Gender
    Female:51.6%50.8%
    Race and ethnicity**
    White:69.4%73.6%
    Black/African American:21.6%12.6%
    Asian:3.6%5.1%
    Native American:0.3%0.8%
    Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
    Two or more:2.7%3%
    Hispanic/Latino:8.7%17.1%
    Education
    High school graduation rate:88.4%86.7%
    College graduation rate:30%29.8%
    Income
    Median household income:$60,509$53,889
    Persons below poverty level:13.9%11.3%
    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
    for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Delaware.

    As of July 2016, Delaware's three largest cities were Wilmington (pop. est. 71,106), Dover (pop. est. 37,538), and Newark (pop. est. 33,858).