SD 1 Candidate Forum Open Thread
Figured I’d wait until tonight’s forum concluded. We heard from four of the nine candidates tonight: Adriana Leela Bohm, Dan Cruce, George Frankel and Chris Otto.
The Zoom meeting was once again exceedingly well-done.
A lot more questions tonight focused on education than was the case with the SD 5 forum earlier this week.
Yes, I have some opinions, but I first want to hear from you.
David Sheppard has also withdrawn. So, we’ve got David Vagnoni, Ken Woods (??!!), and Chantae Vinson tonight. Truth-in-advertising: Dave Vagnoni is on our RD 7 committee and, yes, I really like him.
I would comment but I am not allowed to. Don’t want anyone to call bull shit on me
Poor guy.
What did you think of your pal’s idea that retired Green Berets from Claymont should go into the ‘rough’ schools?
Just curious.
I hereby grant you the right to respond–and to comment ad infinitum.
A right you already had.
The Green Beret project offers at risk youth dynamic programs after school and on weekends to help youth for future success.
Whatever you say, ‘Wayne’.
Your pal, who I suspect you know more intimately than you have let on, claimed that their goal would be ‘conflict resolution’. (We’re not idiots here.)
We have a history as to how Green Berets resolve ‘conflict’. Don’t think it jibes with, um, public education.
Where do you get the idea that retired Green Berets are eager to act as school monitors?
Do you even understand what Green Berets do? They go into areas of guerrilla warfare to train counter-insurgency fighters. You might have them confused with Army Rangers.
Once they leave the service these guys are in high demand, and they can earn a lot more than whatever wage you’re going to pay hall monitors.
This is akin to the lavender-in-the-parks idea he floated in the last race: Weirdly specific and poorly thought out.
Cruce is a nightmare for public education. He proudly supports some of the worst “reforms” of the Markell years that we are still trying to get out from under today.
As a candidate, he sounded like a great bureaucrat. Often started his answers stating that he only had two minutes, then rattled off survey results and stats.
Can’t see him interacting well with fellow legislators with that approach.
If I heard him correctly, didn’t he say he had support from ‘the trades’? Hmmm, sounds like he might be–Carney’s choice.
Agree! Nix,, nix, nix NO on Cruce.
When Cruce used a Race to the Top example as evidence of coalition building, I scratched my head. RttT was top-down bureaucracy that alienated educators, districts, and publicly elected school boards. In no way was it a model of effective coalition building.
The fact he couldn’t come up with a better example of something that wasn’t so reviled says to me I’ve got to go elsewhere. His other education answers were just as bad.
OK, Wayne’s Whirld pissed me off (not difficult to do, I admit).
So, I decided to take a dive into the election results to investigate Frankel’s assertion that he won SD 1 during the primary for County Council President.
The result?: Technically true, but very misleading. Both Jason Hoover and Val Gould were also city residents, both ran as progressive candidates, and they basically swamped Wayne’s boy, George Frankel. While I COULD break it down by individual ED’s or wards, this should suffice:
There are 9 ED’s in RD 1 that are also in SD 1. Val Gould actually defeated Frankel in RD 1–682 to 661. Jason Hoover got 489 votes. There are 3 ED’s in RD 2 that are in SD 1. Frankel: 409, Gould: 340, Hoover: 270. There are 4 ED’s in RD 3 in SD 1: Frankel: 504, Gould: 405, Hoover: 312. Monique Johns won all three of these RD’s in overwhelming fashion.
Let’s move to the more suburban districts. As it turns out, RD 6 appears to be the RD with the most voters among all the SD 1 RD’s. The results in RD 6 (12 ED’s): Hoover: 939 , Frankel: 687, Gould : 655. Hoover won the district overall. RD 7 (4 ED’s): Frankel: 567, Gould: 417, Hoover: 322. RD 12 (5 ED’s): Frankel: 1192, Hoover: 987, Gould: 907.
So. The lesson here is that together, Gould and Hoover swamped Frankel in SD 1. Also, the only reason he finished second is because Gould and Hoover split the vote of what we can call the progressive constituency. Otherwise, one of them likely would be Council President right now. Not Monique Johns. Not George Frankel.
Like I said, his claim was technically true, but completely misleading.
If there was a drinking game and the word was Coons spoken by Frankel, there would have been ambulance calls for alcohol poisoning. What an entitled clown!
Cruce struck me as a bureaucrat running for office. Frankel struck me as a marketing guy running for office.
Nailed it. Cruce did a lot of roll your eyes riffs and Frankel made me feel like I was at a Zig Zigler event at the old Latin Casino, IYKYK
Can someone post the names of the people who are voting?
Oh god. Can we not do Frankel good people who vote in that process, whoever that is.
He’s a builder candidate for Council President who got 26 percent of the vote. Yes Monique won but only got 28 percent but the county will have to deal with that shit show.
Frankel thinks because he works for coons as a page or something he is owed a seat. He’s young but represents the few young people left that the Delaware way wants
There was a point about 20 years ago when you could be considered progressive by backing same-sex marriage, regardless of your positions on broader issues, cf Jack Markell. Coons might have seemed progressive for a moment or two back then, but he’s since proved himself anything but.
So when Frankel touts his internship with Coons, he’s appealing to that sort of wishy-washy Democrat – and there’s no shortage of them in Delaware – who’s very pro-business. Yet Wayne, who might well be his campaign manager for all I know, keeps pushing his name here without ever putting forward any progressive positions Frankel holds.
My advice to Mr. Frankel would be to go get an actual job with an actual employer, doing actual work for actual money in an actual corporate environment. If you want the job, George, it would be most helpful to learn the life actual working people live before you start gracing them with your ideas about how to spend the public’s money.
To Klaus, who wanted to know why I considered George unqualified because he hasn’t had a private-sector job, when I haven’t said the same about Sarah McBride and certain other progressives who entered elective politics young.
I didn’t say George was unqualified. I pointed out that he’s not a progressive and said he should get some real job experience, in hopes that he’d develop some progressive values in the process.
If you want to stump for the guy here, state his progressive bona fides. It’s not a difficult ask, but it’s certainly stumped Frankel and his buddies.
Melissa Froemming has officially withdrawn from consideration for the SD 1 seat, citing concerns about the process of selecting a candidate. Here is her notice of withdrawal:
“My Fellow Candidates and Delaware Democratic Party Members,
I write to you today with confidence in and hope for the future of our Party, but delivering this message is bittersweet. After a good deal of reflection, I have made the decision to resign as a candidate in the upcoming special election for Senate District 1.
This decision was not an easy one.
I truly believe that I have the qualities, skills and relationships with the people and places throughout our district that are uniquely needed to continue SD 1’s legacy of exceptional, accessible representation, and strong leadership. But I also believe that stepping aside to take a stand on a larger issue is the right decision for this moment.
As outlined in this petition, this race has brought to light systemic issues in our Party’s nomination process—issues that are flawed and undemocratic. However, I am equally convinced that we have the power, and the time, to address these challenges now, beginning with this very election. What better moment to make meaningful changes than during a year when our Party is undergoing significant reckoning and reorganization on a national scale?
Delaware, as we so often have, can lead by example. Our size allows us to act with agility and intention, and when we commit to a shared goal, we have shown time and again that we can achieve extraordinary things. No story better illustrates this than the leadership of our outgoing Senator and U.S. Congresswoman-elect, Sarah McBride. With the support of a dedicated coalition of individuals and organizations, she helped secure paid family leave for Delawareans in record time—a reminder of what is possible when we work together for a cause greater than ourselves.
In the same spirit, I urge all of you to consider this special election as an opportunity—not just to fill a vacancy but to reform and strengthen the democratic processes of our Party. By addressing these “low-hanging fruit” issues now, we can ensure our Party embodies the values of transparency, fairness, and inclusivity that we hold dear.
I look forward to the opportunity to join forces with you to make this vision a reality for our Party. Together, we can honor the principles that unite us as Democrats while inspiring trust and confidence among those we seek to represent.
Thank you for your dedication to our Party and to the people of Delaware. I remain hopeful and committed to the work ahead.
In partnership and solidarity,
Melissa”
Your post looks a lot better than her email. I got such a weird screenshot from someone of the message in different fonts and sizes, like 10 people edited it on different devices.
Not gonna lie–I left the forum early tonight. We had two promising young candidates in Dave Vagnoni and Chantae Vinson, both of whom pretty much said that they’re still learning. I think both have bright futures. Someone was in the middle of asking a question that was more like a polemic. After about three minutes of asking the question that wouldn’t end, I could take no more.
The third candidate was labor/political hack Ken Woods, who inherited a County Council seat from his father, but left to move in with his girlfriend who lives in SD 1.
Nothing I saw over the two nights even threatened to change my view of the race. Adriana Bohm, to me, is by far the best candidate who is ready to serve and to contribute from Day One.
I suspect that Dan Cruce is her most likely challenger, but I can’t get behind a bureaucrat who was all in on Jack Markell’s charter school agenda. The only reason he’s her most likely challenger is that he is the Delaware Way candidate, likely Carney’s choice, and has a Rolodex full of insiders who might give him money.
Chris Otto made next to no impression on me. Vagnoni and Vinson both have great futures, but I don’t think they’re quite ready.
Bringing up the rear are Frankel who, if he keeps at it, has Dennis E. Williams potential, and Woods, who has no potential.
That’s my take. What do you think?
Tough night. Two nice people and a hack. I hope both Mr. Vagnoni and Ms. Vinson stay involved in the community but now is not the time. Listening to Woods it’s difficult to imagine he ever won an election, but hacks of a feather flock together.
Didn’t he just succeed his dad?
Yep, both as an elected and Business Agent for Sheet Metal workers. A rare bird the clipped wing ‘Double Nepo” 🙂
Tonight is painful. Really painful. The talent clearly was on display last night. I’m listening now and no one is breaking out. Some of the responses aren’t even in the area of answering the questions.
I’m with you. Adriana is my preferred candidate. Smart. Articulate. Record of accomplishments. Will be visible and vocal. Just what the Dems need following the election two weeks ago.
My take isn’t all that dissimilar from Som’s, but I’ll give it anyway because why the hell not. I’m listing the candidates in reverse alphabetical order.
Ken Woods: A carpetbagger who recently moved into the district and somehow feels entitled to represent it. A former County Councilman, he seemed wildly out of his depth during the forum, giving long, rambling statements that never seemed to answer the questions being asked. Gave perhaps one of the worst answers I’ve heard recently on police accountability.
Chantae’ Vinson: Currently an Education Equity ambassador for the ACLU and an alum of the Ella Baker Organizer program from Network Delaware, I found her awnswers to be kind of a mixed bag: on certain topics she had clear, concise answers that showed a depth of knowledge, and on others where she seemed less knowledgeable, she tended to get lost in the sauce. I don’t think she’s necessarily a good fit for the district, which says more about SD1 than it does about her, but I think we could sorely use someone like her in the GA
I’m putting Dave Vagnoni and Chis Otto together because they’re functionally clones of each other, in an electoral sense. Both are relatively young, millennial professionals (Vagnoni is a teacher, Otto is a nurse). Neither have much experience in politics, which showed in their answers. They were generally both progressive in how they answered but neither had the depth of knowledge or experience to make effective legislators in my opinion. I hope they both stay involved, but I think both should drop out of the race ASAP.
There isn’t much to say about George Frankel that hasn’t already been said. His policies seem to center around throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks. He doesn’t seem to understand how the Senate works, acting like he’ll be able to just force through his agenda on day one, and while he did indeed come in second in the NCC council president race, I suspect that has more to do with his name appearing first on the ballot in a race no one really paid much attention to, rather than his own popularity.
Saving the last two for their own comment, as I think they’re the main contenders:
Dan Cruce is very clearly the Delaware Way candidate. Som describes him as a bureaucrat, but I think it’s more accurate to describe him as a elitist technocrat, someone who will move heaven and earth to ensure that those in power stay in power and providing a bulwark against any far-reaching progressive agenda. His argument for housing was to privatize the Housing Authority to cut out the red tape, and his answer on childcare centered around getting more people back to work, rather than simply easing the burden of raising a child. If we as progressives want to ensure that the government of Delaware works for all of us, and not simply those who have the most powerful, then it behooves us to stop Cruce here and now.
Finally there’s Adriana Bohm, whom I agree with Som would be my choice for the RD1 candidate. A member of the Red Clay school board, her answers were always smart, well-informed and refused to yield to any of the standard Delaware Way framing. She is also, as far as I’m aware, the only person in the race who bothered to help expand the current house majority by canvassing for Frank Burns and Monica Beard, whereas everyone else seemed fixated on trying to get a leg up on this current special election. Delaware would be so much better off if would had more people like Adriana working in elected office.