Delaware Political Weekly: Week Ending June 4, 2026
Just when I think that we’re pretty much done with intriguing new developments, I’m proven wrong.
At least wrong enough so that I’ve got items for yet another political weekly.
1. Sen. Mantzavinos Gets A Primary Challenger. Well, I didn’t hear about this until this morning, but he filed yesterday. So…I’m counting it. One Jose Lopez has filed as a D in SD 7, a Prices Corner/Faulkland Heights-area district. If he’s the same Jose Lopez, he is the founder of La Tolteca, has served as the chair of the Latin-American Community Center, and has served on the board of the Delaware Restaurant Association. It’s a late entry, and I don’t think he is backed by the likes of WFP. Nevertheless, an interesting candidate. To me, Spiros has outperformed my expectations, especially when it comes to protecting nursing home residents, so we’ll see how this goes.
2. A Rumor I AM Aware Of. Looks like one of NCC Council’s rubber-stamps for developers and data centers might have a progressive challenger by the end of the weekend. That’s it. For now.
3. What’s The Story Behind The Candidacy Of Ayanna Khan-Flowers In RD 9? I ask because (a) she’s certainly as qualified as anybody for this position, however; (b) she’s entering really late into a primary with two equally-qualified candidates. This is the seat being vacated by Kevin Hensley. I feel there has to more to this story. Otherwise, she would presumably have entered earlier. So–is one of the other candidates dropping out? Is this an attempt to split the vote somehow? Does anybody know anything, as I clearly do not?
4. Rep. Bryan Shupe Files For Election. Noteworthy because the Milford area Republican barely, and I mean barely (12 vote margin) edged out Patrick Smith in the 2024 primary. Meaning, this rematch will be competitive.
5. Republican Files In RD 12. Steve Pickering. Got 38.7% running as an R against Krista Griffith in 2024. 38.7% is about what an R can reasonably expect to get in that district.
6. Filings: Rep. ‘Rae’ Moore (D-RD 8); Rep. Cyndie Romer (D-RD 25); Rep. Eric Morrison (D-RD 27).
That’s all I’ve got this week. What’d I miss, and whaddayathink?
This would explain why Spiros looked so shook up at the Greek festival last night. Agreed he has made some headway on nursing homes, but he does not make my shortlist of progressive champions. I’ll listen to what Lopez has to say, but his tie to the restaurant association and their general politcal bent makes me uneasy
I saw Spiros at the Greek Fest yesterday. Didn’t seem so shook up to me. We traded Greek restaurant tips.
I called out to him to say hello and got the cold shoulder. Maybe he felt more comfortable around an ally.
I’ve been critical of Spiros on lots of things.
But the nursing home reform efforts were close to my heart as it was an issue I worked on a lot with Sen. Marshall when I worked for the Senate.
Jamar Money Republican filed for 9 th seat as well. Not sure if he is part of the Money family farms in Middletown
OK, I asked about the candidacy of Ayanna Khan-Flowers. Turns out there could be a tie-in with both her candidacy and that of Jose Gomez, with opposition to SB 272 being the common denominator:
https://legis.delaware.gov/BillDetail?LegislationId=143024
In other words, could be stealth candidates for Associated Builders and Contractors–the anti-union shops.
When I get two of my fave spies suggesting this even though they haven’t talked to each other, I see a pattern.