The incumbent: Charles Potter.
District Registration: 12,665 D; 1,444 R; 2,626 I. Those are not misprints.
OK, why should Charles Potter be primaried?
First, he and his family have fed at the public trough for far too long. And, yes, by ‘family’ I also include disgraced ex-Mayor Dennis P. Williams, who is Potter’s cousin. The same disgraced ex-Mayor who hired Velda and who hired Velda and Charles’ would-be rap impresario son. Who, of course, both proceeded to misuse their public offices. And these ethical lapses extend to Charles Potter as well. There’s so much more. Cassandra was all over this at the time:
https://delawareliberal.net//2016/08/11/i-get-email/
https://delawareliberal.net//2013/09/23/as-the-potters-field-turns/
Charles Potter and the entire Potter/Williams clan have no ethical compass whatsoever. That in and of itself should be grounds for a primary.
Second, Potter has a particular knack for mucking things up. Take, for example, his intervention into the Baynard Stadium upgrade. Please. Guy’s nothing but a bullshit artist.
OK, let me just say that I think that a primary challenge to Potter has a great chance to be successful. Especially if Eugene Young’s Network Delaware gets behind a candidate. In the 2016 Mayoral primary, Young defeated Williams in RD 1 by a 970-888 margin. Keep in mind that Williams represented the 1st RD in Dover for 18 years, from 1995 to 2013. It gets even worse for the Potter/Williams clan if you look at the 1st RD mayoral numbers in toto. Of the 4008 votes cast in RD 1 in the mayoral primary, the favorite son who represented the district in Dover for two decades got just over 22% of the vote. 78% of D voters supported someone other than Williams. Potter’s initial claim to the seat was simply that he was Dennis’ cousin and hand-picked successor. That on its own won’t get him reelected, and that’s all he has.
Gene Mauch once said ‘Sometimes you add by subtracting’. That’s precisely the case with Potter. If the Young forces get behind an ethical and progressive challenger, I see no reason why that person should not defeat the ethical sewer that is Charles Potter. I hope they do.