Did Stephanie Bolden Sell Out Her Constituents For $1200?
What’s not at issue is that Rep. Bolden (more on who she represents in a minute) sold out every one of her constituents who rents. She also sold out every tenant who rents in the state of Delaware.
To understand how, first read SS 1/SB 101 (Townsend). The bill creates a right to counsel for renters, particularly those in low-income areas:
Approximately 18,000 eviction cases are filed each year in the State of Delaware, and while 86% of landlords are represented by an attorney, agent, or business manager, only 2% of tenants have representation…(e)victions and disruptive displacement also have significant, well-documented, and long-lasting effects on the lives of individuals and families, including poorer physical and mental health, increased risk of homelessness, increased risk of employment loss, loss of personal property, damage to credit standing, and relocation into substandard housing. Further, evictions fall disproportionately on Black and Latinx families, who have also been the hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis.
Section 1 of this Act establishes a right to counsel for covered individuals with household income below 200% of the federal poverty guideline for evictions and other landlord-tenant actions. A Coordinator for the program will be appointed by the Attorney General. The Coordinator will contract with legal services providers for the provision of representation in proceedings covered by this Act. Section 1 also requires the Coordinator to work with community organizations to do outreach and education regarding the right to counsel. And, landlords must provide notice of the right to counsel at periodic designated intervals in the tenancy and in eviction proceedings.
This is a great bill that was sponsored by many of the progressive legislators we elected last year.
Now understand this. The bill passed the Senate 13-7, with only Sen. Mantzavinos among the D’s going ‘not voting’ (you’ll have to ask him why). All other D’s voted yes.
The bill was assigned to the Housing & Community Affairs Committee in the House. The committee is comprised of 6 D’s and 4 R’s. The chair is Kendra Johnson, who is one of the bill’s sponsors. The Vice-Chair is Bolden. If all 6 D’s voted to release the bill from committee, it would have headed to the House floor. However, Stephanie Bolden, after running interference for the development interests during the hearing (giving them more time to speak than the bill’s supporters), voted not to release the bill from committee. 5-5 tie vote, bill doesn’t get released.
Now you may be saying, that’s all well and good, El Som, but what’s this $1200 all about?
Thank you for asking. Stephanie Bolden got $1200 in campaign donations on the same day in the form of two $600 donations:
08/16/2018 BPG Real Estate Services LLC, 322 A. Street, Wilmington, Delaware, 19801 $600.00
08/16/2018 BPGS Construction LLC, 322 A. Street, Wilmington, Delaware, 19801 $600.00
For those of you who have not figured out what BPG stands for, it stands for Buccini/Pollin Group. Mayor Mike’s co-pilot. They donated $1200 to Stephanie Bolden in 2018, when she was facing a D opponent in a primary. Thanks to the vagaries of Delaware law, apparently every LLC that Buccini/Pollin creates can donate up to $600, should they choose to do so. Or not. Barristers, care to weigh in?
They did the same thing for Hanifa Shabazz in 2020. You remember her–she gave Stephanie Bolden a job as ‘receptionist’ for City Council.
While BPG generally does not donate in most legislative races, they also funneled $1200 (again, two separate LLC’s) to Debra Heffernan in 2018 for the general election (you’ll have to ask her why), not to mention an additional $600 to her RD committee (subject for future investigation), and also $600 to Nnamdi Chukwuocha for the 2018 primary where he ousted Charles Potter. No other current state legislator representing the city has ever gotten a campaign contribution from BPG, although Speaker Pete, who doesn’t need it, got $300.
Here’s what’s irrefutable. The people who live in RD 2, which is one of the poorest districts in the state, were sold out by their state representative. She voted against providing legal counsel for her own constituents in landlord-tenant disputes. She effectively buried the bill all by herself. Whether she sold them out for $1200 from Buccini/Pollin really isn’t important.
The fact is: She sold them out.
If you were BPG why wouldn’t you buy some legislators – they can be had for SO cheap!
Leg Hall? More like Leg Bargain Basement
Which is all the more reason to call out those who have been bought–especially when a legislator places BPG’s interests above the needs of their constituents.
I don’t think any legislator would sell out for $1200 per se. The money was no doubt preceded by some smooth lobbying contact. What the money represents is that BPG and its network of allies will not support a Bolden opponent. And there is no doubt more bundled money behind that $1200, if needed to defeat a more progressive opponent.
Bolden has hardly been a fundraising dynamo. Not to mention, she rarely has to spend much. $1200 is a nice chunk o’ change.
Not to mention, you’re wrong. Darius Brown loudly lamented his dearth of campaign funds. Got some and, in exchange, voted to raise the height of the Minquadale landfill.
To me, whether BPG cut a deal in advance followed by the money, or they sent the money and then lobbied her to bury the bill, doesn’t matter.
What matters is that she sold out her constituents. She can and, I think, WILL be defeated if she has a decent challenger and if she has a district.
And yet, I think Puck is onto something. More than anything, these weak legislators are terrified of facing decent primary challengers. It is what gives the lunatic right so much power.
If they were terrified of facing decent primary challengers, they’d represent their constituents instead of the special interests.
Doesn’t matter how much they bank–see Dave McBride, for an example, if they stop representing their constituents, they can lose.
If 2020 didn’t smarten ’em up, they’re doomed to political extinction in 2022.
Agreed.
We need to make it happen. When they fear the people supported primary opponent more than the money supported primary opponent big things can happen.
I think you overestimate the cost of buying a politician in Delaware, and underestimate how cash-strapped/greedy those who represent poor areas often are.
Exactly. As a former colleague once said, “It’s not that they sell out, it’s that they sell out so cheap.”
Your mention of Hanifa Shabazz reminds me that she refused to say how she managed to afford a condo in one of those BPG towers on the Christina because she didn’t want to “put her business out in the street.”
This from the archives from Paul Calistro:
“Five minutes prior the house vote on payday lending reform I was informed that Stephanie had changed her position . I rushed to the floor and asked what change her mind? She told me ” my hairdresser told me this was bad for my people.” When I tried to present an alternative view I was quickly dismissed with ” you don’t understand people from my side of town, they ( I guess I was they) are trying to take one more thing away from my people”. I was hurt, disappointed and amazed .
So… if not for people coming here to economically exploit this community, nobody would come to this community.
That’s actually plausible. Dumb & shortsighted, but plausible.
Using that logic, I guess what they’re ‘taking away from my people’ in the legal protection for renters bill is…I GOT it…they’ll take away landlords if they can’t exploit her people.