Delaware Political Weekly: Week Ending November 27, 2025

“We are kings of our bikes. So, we are again really lucky to live in Rehoboth, when we park a car, we have to get back into the car. We can hop on our bikes and our ritual is that we are always biking from our home to L(ewe)s. We do a little bit of walking around, a little bit of margarita, a little bit of good food – there’s amazing food then bike right back. So the ritual, on our bikes, every chance we can, any place we can go, and eliminate the cars.”–Dan Cruce.

A Random Factoid Totally Unrelated To Anything That May Appear In Today’s Column:  When a sociopath tells you that they’ve changed, just remember that they are lying because sociopaths, by definition, are incapable of telling the truth.

The week’s big news: Two incumbent R legislators announce their retirement.

1.  RD 33: Rep. Charles Postles announces that he will not seek reelection:

State Representative Charles Postles (R), who has served the 33rd District since 2016, says he will not seek reelection in 2026. Postles, 76, made the announcement after recovering from a recent illness and says he wants more time to focus on personal family matters.

The 33rd District covers parts of southeast Kent County, including Milford, Frederica, Bowers, Magnolia and Houston.

We had already gotten a clue that perhaps Postles might retire with the filing of a campaign committee by R Morgan Hudson.  Hudson has previously run for office twice before.  She ran in the 2016 33rd RD primary that was won by Postles. Hudson finished third in the three-person race with slightly over 19% of the vote.  She then ran for a Kent County Levy Court seat in 2022, and lost to Robert Scott by a total of 61 votes.  Scott, BTW, had finished second in that 33rd RD primary with about 35% of the vote.  So, it’s not a foregone conclusion that Hudson will have the R field to herself in 2026.  In fact, that’s officially the case.  R Matt Bucher, Milford School Board Vice-President, filed this week for the seat:

The reason I am running is I believe we need representation in the 33^rd District from someone who knows how to fight, knows how to win, and believes, as I think most of you do, that we need to speak our values clearly and protect our area’s interests when faced with a state government that doesn’t always seem to have us in mind. I also think, at this point in time, I am that person.

The current registration figures in RD 33 are as follows: 6145 D; 6481 R; 7018 I.  I’m not yet aware of any D who is running.  Postles’ last contested race was in 2020 (before redistricting).  He defeated Rachael King by a 58-42 margin.

2. RD 41.  Rep. Rich Collins announces that he will not seek reelection.  Two candidates have officially filed for the seat, R Doug Conaway and D Ryan Stuckey:

Two local business owners have already filed to run for Collins’ seat in House District 41, which covers Millsboro, Dagsboro, and Gumboro. Republican Doug Conaway, who runs Douglas Builders, and Democrat Ryan Stuckey, owner of a coffee shop in Dagsboro, are seeking the open seat.

However, the big story is the Scurvy Dog Who Hasn’t Barked.  Or, to be more precise, the scurvy dog who hasn’t stopped barking but hasn’t yet filed.  We’re talking John Atkins who, during his two stints in Dover, was first rejected by the Republican Caucus, and later rejected by the Democratic Caucus, including by Atkins’ ‘rabbi’, Pete Schwartzkopf.   The online lovefest between Collins and Atkins suggests that a handshake hand-off between the two is what they both want.  Can’t think of two people who deserve each other more.

Raising the question, is someone with the following record (according to Wikipedia) even eligible to serve in the General Assembly?:

On October 29, 2006, Atkins was caught drunk driving and used his representative identification to gain leniency from the Ocean City, Maryland police officers and avoid arrest for the incident. An investigation by the House Ethics Committee found that Atkins had continued to drive across the Delaware state line after being instructed to refrain from driving and was arrested later that morning on a charge of offensive touching following a physical altercation with his then wife.

He had attempted to avoid the domestic violence arrest by making “several attempts to speak with Millsboro police chief.”[13] Fellow Republican Richard C. Cathcart sponsored House Resolution 13 to censure Atkins, and it was approved by the House Ethics Committee. The proposed sanctions included requiring him to forgo use of his legislative identification card and legislative license plate, be removed as chairman from any legislative committees, pay a fine, receive an alcohol evaluation, and comply with court-ordered counseling. Atkins resigned from his seat on March 27, 2007, before the official censure took effect.[13][14]

He subsequently switched his party registration and was reelected in the next election as a member of the Democratic Party.
In 2012, Atkins resigned from the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee after attacking a police officer in an angry email.[15] He had received a verbal warning from the police officer after being caught speeding and sent the email to a state police captain to complain.[16]

On June 5, 2014, the Delaware Family Court issued a restraining order for Atkins to stay away from his estranged wife and children due to allegations of violence and abuse.[15][17] The next day, Atkins filed a petition against his wife claiming she was the one being abusive.[18] As of June 13, 2014, Atkins and his wife were sharing joint custody of their children, although his wife maintained allegations of harassment and abuse.[19] In June 2016, Atkins was arrested after a physical altercation with his ex-girlfriend. He was charged with offensive touching and criminal mischief, and decided against a bid to regain his seat that he had been considering.[20] The charges were later dropped on the basis of insufficient evidence.[9]

In July 2018, Atkins was arrested and charged with felony strangulation and assault after an argument with his then girlfriend where he squeezed her neck until she could not breathe.[15][21] He was arrested two more times that month for domestic violence and harassment that violated a no-contact order.[5][22] On August 17, 2018, he pled guilty to misdemeanor assault and breach of release charges, and was sentenced to time served, which was 22 days in prison, along with one year of probation. He remained incarcerated until he received an electronic GPS device and was prohibited from possessing a firearm for five years.[7]

I’m well aware of the decision by then-AG Charles Oberly that enabled Herman Holloway Jr. to seek office after having been found guilty of an ‘infamous crime’, albeit a non-violent misdemeanor.  But Holloway never assaulted anybody.  It’s incumbent on the Attorney General to determine whether the Sussex Strangler is similarly eligible to run.  To me, strangulation is a huge step up from fiscal impropriety, but what do I know?

BTW, take a look at the timeframe for Atkins’ legal misadventures–2006 to 2018.  How many times during that period did his defenders claim that he had changed?  Including Pete Schwartzkopf.

Atkins is a proven threat to those who dare cross him. When even mildly provoked, he resorts to violence.   The Attorney General should determine that he is ineligible to serve in the General Assembly.  Or at least require that he include on his campaign lit:  Vote For John Atkins–Woman-Beaters Deserve Representation Too.

Speaking of who should be ineligible to run, it is past time for someone to question whether Dan Cruce resides in his district.  They changed the law after Dave McBride was defeated.  We have almost the exact same situation here.  I think a legal challenge is essential.

That’s all I’ve got this week.  What’d I miss and whaddayathink?