Delaware House of Representatives

Delaware House of Representatives
Delaware General Assembly
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Term limits
None
History
New session started
January 8, 2013
Leadership
Peter Schwartzkopf (D)
Since January 8, 2013
Majority Leader
Valerie Longhurst (D)
Since January 8, 2013
Minority Leader
Daniel Short (R)
Since January 8, 2013
Structure
Seats 41
Political groups

Governing party

Opposition party

Length of term
2 years
Authority Article III, Section 1, Delaware Constitution
Salary $41,680/year + per diem
Elections
Last election
November 4, 2014
(41 seats)
Next election
November 8, 2016
(41 seats)
Redistricting Legislative Control
Meeting place
House of Representatives Chamber
Delaware Legislative Hall
Dover, Delaware
Website
legis.delaware.gov

The Delaware House of Representatives is the lower house of the Delaware General Assembly; the state legislature of the US state of Delaware. It is composed of 41 Representatives from an equal number of constituencies, each of whom is elected to a two-year term. Its members are not subject to term limits. The House meets at the Delaware Legislative Hall in Dover.

Name

From 1776 to 1792, the chamber was known as the House of Assembly, a common name for lower houses of colonial legislatures and states under the Confederation. The name was changed by Delaware's 1792 Constitution, reflecting the new federal House of Representatives. This change on the part of Delaware initiated a movement that has resulted in a majority of the lower houses of U.S. state legislatures sharing the name of the federal House of Representatives.

Leadership

The Speaker of the House presides over the House of Representatives. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the full House through the passage of a House Resolution. The Speaker is the chief leadership position of the body. The other House leaders are elected by their respective party caucuses. The Majority Leader determines which bills are brought to the floor for debate from an Agenda prepared by the Speaker of the House and manages debates and floor votes.

As of September 2016 the Speaker of the House is Peter Schwartzkopf of District 14 (Rehoboth Beach). Terry Spence was the longest serving speaker in the history of the Delaware General Assembly.

Qualifications

Members of the House of Representatives must be citizens of the United States, have lived in Delaware for three years, been a resident of their constituent district for at least one year preceding their election, and must be at least 24 years old by the time of their election.

Current composition

Affiliation Party
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
Total
Democratic Republican Vacant
End of 147th legislature 27 14 41 0
Begin of 148th legislature (2015) 25 16 41 0
August 3, 2015[1] 24 40 1
September 12, 2015[2] 25 41 0
August 10, 2016[3] 15 40 1
Latest voting share 62.5% 37.5%

Current members, 2014–2016

District Name Party First Elected Residence
1 Charles Potter, Jr. Dem 2012 Brandywine Hills
2 Stephanie Bolden Dem 2010
3 Helene Keeley Dem 1996 Wilmington South
4 Gerald Brady Dem 2006 Wilmington West
5 Melanie G. Smith Dem 2002 Bear/Newark
6 Debra Heffernan Dem 2010 Edgewood Hills
7 Bryon Short Dem 2007
8 S. Quinton Johnson Dem 2008 Middletown
9 Kevin Hensley Rep 2014
10 Sean Matthews Dem 2014 Delaware
11 Jeffrey Spiegelman Rep 2012 Clayton
12 Deborah Hudson Rep 1994 Fairthorne
13 John Mitchell, Jr. Dem 2006 Elsmere
14 Peter Schwartzkopf Dem 2002 Rehoboth
15 Valerie Longhurst Dem 2004 Bear
16 James Johnson Dem 2004 Jefferson Farms
17 Michael Mulrooney Dem 1998 Pennwood
18 David Bentz Dem 2015
19 Kimberly Williams Dem 2012 Klair Estates
20 Stephen Smyk Rep 2012 Milton
21 Michael Ramone Rep 2008 Drummond Hill
22 Joseph Miró Rep 1998 Pike Creek Valley
23 Paul Baumbach Dem 2012 Newark
24 Edward Osienski Dem 2010
25 John Kowalko Dem 2006 Newark South
26 John Viola Dem 1998 Newark
27 Earl Jaques, Jr. Dem 2008 Glasgow
28 William Carson, Jr. Dem 2008 Smyrna
29 W. Charles Paradee Dem 2012
30 William Outten Rep 2004 Harrington
31 Sean Lynn Dem 2014 Dover
32 Andria Bennett Dem 2012 Dover
33 Vacant
34 Lyndon Yearick Rep 2014
35 David L. Wilson Rep 2008 Bridgeville
36 Harvey Kenton Rep 2010
37 Ruth Briggs King Rep 2009 Georgetown/Lewes
38 Ronald E. Gray Rep 2012 Selbyville
39 Daniel Short Rep 2006 Seaford
40 Timothy Dukes Rep 2012 Laurel
41 Richard Collins Rep 2014 Millsboro

See also

References

  1. Democrat Michael Barbieri (District 18) resigned August 3, 2015 to take a new job
  2. Democrat David Bentz (District 18) won the September 12, 2015 special election to succeed Michael Barbieri
  3. Republican Harold Peterman (District 33) died August 10, 2016

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/23/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.