BREAKING NEWS:  Branden Fletcher Dominguez is out of primary??

Here’s what just arrived in my e-mail:

On Friday, August 30th, the Department of Elections reached out to my campaign requesting documentation by Tuesday of this week that I unfortunately was not in a position to provide. After communication with the Department I have decided to withdraw my candidacy for the upcoming September 10th primary.

I deeply apologize to all my supporters, volunteers, and donors who have been working tirelessly for the last year to help me get elected to be the 3rd District State Representative. I want to thank you all for the support that you have provided me since we launched this campaign last summer.

While I will not be able to continue this campaign as planned, my commitment to the issues we fought for – affordable housing, addressing gun violence, and investing in our youth—remains steadfast. I will continue to advocate for the change our community deserves.

In the meantime, we still have an election coming up on September 10th, and there are other candidates that need your help. In the city, there are two challengers who will fight for our values at the city council that you should help out with:

• Coby Owens in District 1: https://www.cobyjowens.com/get-involved

• Christian Willauer in District 5: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScoSQeR0MATvyhV1FWda97uHkABcRo35SfERWqmcHojPLUGuw/viewform

Seriously, what the fuck happened?

Wasn’t gonna do this.  But, I can’t help myself.

US Representative:  Sarah McBride (D) and Donyale Hall (R).  Assuming, of course, that anybody turns out to vote in the Republican Primary.

Governor:  Matt Meyer (D) wins, doesn’t quite get to 50%.  Let’s say 46%, BHL 32%, O’Mara 22%.  Can’t wait for the Delaware Way implosion that will follow.  Mike Ramone (R) overwhelmingly wins the primary over two names on the ballot.

Lieutenant Governor:  Kyle Evans Gay wins comfortably.  I think she gets to 50%.

Insurance Commissioner:  Navarro wins.  I’m casting a protest vote for Kayode Abegunde because Navarro deserves a serious challenger.  Sadly, Abegunde isn’t that challenger.

Senate District 18:  Mealy-mush-mouthed Dave Wilson wins against Bob Reed in R primary.

Rep. District 2:.  Buccini/Pollin fave Stephanie Bolden (D) easily turns back James Taylor.

Rep. District 3:  Branden Fletcher Dominguez (D) has the ground game to turn back Josue Ortega, who has more of the Delaware Way $$’s backing him.  Say, 62-38.

Rep. District 10:  Melanie Ross Levin (D) handily defeats Dennis ‘I run for office, therefore I am’ Williams and The Chiropractor Jankovic.  Think she’ll get around 65%.

Rep. District 14:  Speaker Pete has retired.  He’s been trying to (give the) rub (to) Kathy McGuiness, just as he did when he backed her for reelection as State Auditor.  The 14th RD rejected both of them then, and I think they’ll reject them again.  I think Claire Snyder-Hall will win, and I think she should win.  While I like Marty Rendon, I believe we need someone who will strongly challenge the hegemony of the Delaware Way. That’s Claire. I won’t even hazard a guess on percentages.

Rep. District 15: Maybe I’m missing something.  I’ve campaigned in that district for Kamela Smith something like 12 times, maybe more.  Knocked on hundreds of doors.  I’ve been surprised by the lack of support for Our PAL Val Longhurst, the incumbent, and the Speaker Of The House.  No real district strongholds for Longhurst.  Most people have never met her.  Support for Kam has grown stronger with every pass through the district.  I’ve knocked doors on quite a few insurgent campaigns:  Bryan Townsend over Tony DeLuca, and Marie Pinkney over Dave McBride, to name but two.   This has the same feel, even down to the parade of surrogates trying to drag Val’s carcass across the finish line.  Some understandable, some not.  Yes, Val had a shitload of money.  So, too, did Tony DeLuca.  Betcha people are getting two or three mailers a day from Val.  Didn’t work for Tony, I honestly don’t think it will work for Val.  Why? Great grassroots campaign by Kam and her team.  Upset Special:  Kam defeats Longhurst, 53-47.

Rep. District 20:  Stell Parker Selby easily turns back the challenge of one Brian Jenkins in this Suxco district.  I checked, couldn’t find a single solitary fact on Jenkins.

Rep. District 21: I think Frank Burns turns back the challenge of The Other Michael Smith in the D primary to replace the departing Mike Ramone.  It hasn’t been easy to even fill in the blanks of Smith’s candidacy,  which is probably to his advantage.  I’m guessing something like 55-45.

Rep. District 27:  I like Eric Morrison to turn back the heavily-financed (by all the wrong people) challenge of Margie Lopez Waite.  This may be the only primary this year where the traditional D constituencies have joined forces to ward off Eee-vil.  Not to mention, Eric’s progressive bona fides also help in this district.  It’s way premature, but if some of the races turn out the way I think they might, Eric would be a great choice for House Majority Leader.  Just sayin’.  I’m going 60-40.

Rep. District 29:  Sometimes, life intervenes.  I believe that Monica Shockley Porter can defeat Bill Bush.  However, due to circumstances beyond her control, she’s had to dial back on some of her campaign activities.  So, I think Bush wins in this northern Kent County district.  But in two years, watch out.  54-46.

Rep. District 34:  Pretty sure Tracey Miller wins over perennial candidate Ade Kuforiji.  The margin will be interesting in this Kent County district as we begin to see how competitive Miller might be in November against incumbent R Lyndon Yearick.

Rep. District 36:  Bryan Shupe (R) sweeps away the challenge of Patrick Smith in this northern Suxco district.

New Castle County Executive:  Marcus Henry rolls over the challenge from the terminally-incompetent Karen Hartley-Nagle.  Following the one-sided loss, KHN looks to sue somebody/anybody.  Doesn’t look in the mirror.

New Castle County Council President.  It would take someone with the mind of a 3-D chess master to accurately predict the order of finish in this race.  If you’d like to do it, and if you are 100% accurate, you win a free yearly subscription to Delaware Liberal.  I’m picking Monique Johns to win, largely because (a) she’s run before, and (b) she’s the only Black candidate in the race.  Never mind that not a thought about county government has ever crossed her furrowed brow.  I’m picking Bob Williams to finish last.  On merit.   But honestly (said Captain Obvious), I have no clue.

New Castle County Council.  George Smiley retains over the joke candidacy of Michael Brown in CD 7, and Kevin Caneco wins over George Dudlek in a closer contest in CD 12.

Wilmington Mayor:  Here’s what I think I know–Matt Meyer is gonna beat BHL in Wilmington by at least 10 points.  John Carney has basically curtailed his own campaign for Mayor to carry his criminal co-pilot across the finish line.  Seeing that, I would think that Velda Jones-Potter would win.  But then I think that Carney must have some polling that shows him well ahead because, otherwise, he’d be spending all his time on his own campaign.  But then I remember that Carney has never ran a substantive campaign for anything.  So, I think that Velda Jones-Potter wins this race, maybe 52-48.  Let it be said, though, that I have absolutely no confidence in this prediction.

I have only one prediction in the Wilmington City Council races:  Shane Darby wins reelection.  I’m also rooting for Christian Willauer.  The rest?  I’m counting on you guys.

Finally, last, and arguably least, look for Susanne Whitney to defeat Delaware’s Laziest Candidate, Colin Bonini, for the R nomination for Kent County Register of Wills.

Here’s where you come in.  What do you know?  What do you think?  What do you think you know?  What do you think I don’t know?  What are your predictions?

Let’s not bury the lede:  In recent Delaware history, meaning as far back as I can remember, there has NEVER been a candidate with such a lengthy litany of unethical and illegal behavior like Bethany Hall-Long.  From the beginning of her political career up to the present, her actions and those of her husband create a clear picture of someone unworthy of holding political office:

Husband Dana Long caught stealing opponents’ signs.  Caught on camera because BHL’s opponent was having so many signs stolen that they felt compelled to install cameras to catch the thief.  It was Dana Long.

Dana Long  illegally accesses Section 8 information (he was an inspector of Section 8 housing for the County) about residents in BHL’s district , and forwards the information to her campaign to be used for political purposes.  Then-County Executive Tom Gordon complains that he’d like to fire said husband, but can’t because he has a “politically-connected spouse”.

Dana Long is transferred away from his home turf.  He subsequently forms an LLC to use Section 8 insider information to identify and flip houses in his new area in and around Edgemoor in Brandywine Hundred.  He forms the LLC with BHL’s then Chief Of Staff, who remains in those dual positions for at least a couple of years.  BHL illegally fails to list this business on her tax forms even though she was a beneficiary of the business.  That proves to be too much for the Meyer Administration, and Dana is informed that his services are no longer required.

Over the course of 20 years, BHL has only one campaign treasurer–Dana Long.  In 2023, BHL suspends her campaign amid reports of financial irregularities in her campaign finance reports.  We don’t need to go through the stories of the alleged audit which, to this day, has never been released.  Which doesn’t really matter, because it wasn’t a real audit.  Her staff begs her to end her campaign.  She refuses.  Virtually the entire staff quits.  BHL’s campaign files a series of unintelligible amended reports.  To this day, the Department Of Elections continues to withhold information about discrepancies in those reports.

Bethany Hall-Long is now on her third treasurer since Dana Long was relieved of his duties.  The first, a genuine campaign compliance expert, resigned when BHL refused to provide her with bank statements that would either have cleared her or, um, not.  To this day, we don’t know what happened to the $30,000 to $300,000 that went missing from her campaign, and especially how much went into their personal accounts.  The second resigned just as the campaign filed its 30-day primary financial report.  The current treasurer, and this is rich, is Tony DeLuca’s former paramour and current wife.   Both Tony and Debra were double-dipping (or triple-dipping, depending on how you define ‘dipping’) working two jobs, one each for the Delaware State Senate and the Department Of Labor, but were never held accountable for the hours they claimed to work at DOL because their boss refused to release their time cards despite FOIA requests.  (Pro-tip:  Put this little anecdote together with that cryptic story I posted about a certain report gathering dust, and you just MIGHT figure out what the State Auditor is hiding, and on whose behalf she’s hiding it.)

Y’know, Bethany claims that people are biased against her.  Especially reporters.  Fact is, by her definition, that includes all the people who told her to abandon her campaign and then quit when she wouldn’t.  Which, BTW, include both her most recent campaign manager and treasurer, who just quit within the last few weeks.  She has virtually no campaign of her own and is essentially being kept afloat by Third Party PACs.  And two Party hacks.

Add to all this the Opioid Slush Fund ($250 million?  In her hands?) and the recent disclosure that her staff was doing campaign work for her while they were on state time and, well, isn’t that enough?

County Executive Matt Meyer has made his share of enemies.  But, when you look at the enemies he’s made,  the case for him becomes stronger.  The police unions? Check.  Jimmy Maravelias? Check.  John Stinkin’ Carney? Double check.  In fact, his willingness to hold police accountable could prove invaluable if he’s able to get some sort of LEOBOR reform passed.  Plus, he’s in a much better position to bring more open government and transparency to Dover, especially given the likelihood that the House will be more progressive in the upcoming session.  Yes, he’s been far too cozy with the development community in NCC but, with the entire Delaware Way aligned against him, he won’t owe those hacks anything.  My biggest concern centers around the way the Greenville moneyed class has embraced him.  What do they expect to get in return?  Gotta say, I love the idea of Kyle Evans Gay serving as Matt’s Lt. Governor.  Kyle is a true progressive, and I know that Matt campaigned on her behalf when she challenged Cathy Cloutier.

I once envisioned Collin O’Mara as a viable progressive alternative, and was blown away by his presentation at the Working Families Party endorsement event.  I thought he would jump-start his campaign following that event.  But he didn’t.  Didn’t get any mailings from him until earlier this month.  And we still have that bleeping Doctor Doolitle talking animals spot, the cuteness of which has long since worn off.  Yes, I know he lives in Delaware.  But I can’t shake the impression that he has one foot in, and one foot out of the state.  An impression that was reinforced by his lack of statewide visibility for the bulk of the campaign.  I’m sure he didn’t intend to be a spoiler in this race, but he can’t win and most of the votes he gets would assuredly go to Matt Meyer otherwise.

I’m voting for Matt Meyer.  Yes, with both eyes wide open because I am concerned about his wealthy benefactors.  But this is in reality a two person race.  And one of the candidates is irredeemably corrupt.

An Open Letter To Lydia York, State Auditor:

You and I both know something.  The same thing.  You are in possession of a report that could have a direct impact on a statewide race.  Almost certainly will. You and I both know what report we are talking about.

You and I are well aware of the import of this report.  You and I both know what it is in that report that is so important.

The report will eventually be released.  People will find out.  I know of at least part of its contents because it is impossible to keep a story like this hidden, especially when so many hands, so many agencies, so many people, so many educational institut…oops almost gave it away,  have taken part in the preparation of the report.

Seems to me you have three choices: (1) Release the report to the public now and, in so doing, demonstrate that Delaware Way corruption does not have any place in your office;  (2) Wait until after the primary.  The report will still come out, but your failure to release the report earlier will damage your independent reputation, plus the information that you withheld will THEN play a role in the General Election, assuming a certain someone wins the Primary.  (3) Delay the report until after the election.  Your reputation will be sealed, and not in a good way.  Do you really want to run for reelection in 2026 with your reputation in such disrepute?

I enthusiastically supported you because you represent(ed) a breath of fresh air from the casual corruption of the Delaware Way that Kathleen McGuiness embodied.

I still believe that you have the best interests of the State at heart.  Now’s the time to demonstrate it.

Sincerely,

Steve Tanzer

Delaware Liberal

It’s where anybody who is paying attention should have already gone.

Bethany Hall-Long has engaged in so much illegal and unethical activity that any reasonable person should realize that she absolutely should not be our next Governor.

This unethical activity pretty much started when she first ran for office and (a) her husband stole her opponent’s signs, and (b) illegally accessed information about Section 8 residents in BHL’s district and forwarded it to the campaign to be used in an illegal manner.

I’ll save the rest for my write-up of the Governor’s race.

We now know that the Department of Elections withheld information damaging to her campaign until a FOIA request, and that they are withholding more information damaging to her campaign.  How do I know?  Because if it wasn’t damaging to her campaign, it would be public record by now.   The State Auditor simply must conduct a performance audit of this long-time Delaware Way agency.

But that’s not today’s story, which was broken by Nick Stonesifer.  BHL has been saying ‘Fuck you’ to the AG’s office for nine months:

The Delaware Attorney General’s office sent a letter late last week to the lieutenant governor’s staff demanding access to information about the state’s $250 million opioid relief fund.

The state’s chief prosecutor first sought access to monitoring information during a meeting more than nine months ago with the lieutenant governor, and has yet to receive information on any awardees, according to a letter obtained by Spotlight Delaware.

Now, kids, consider this:  The only reason why Delaware secured these funds is because Attorneys General across the country litigated against the manufacturers and distributors on behalf of the public.  Bethany Hall-Long had absolutely nothing to do when it came to securing this $250 mill.

Now, keep in mind that the so-called commission established to disburse and track these funds was established within the Lieutenant Governor’s office. Paging John Carney.  Yes, the Attorney General co-chaired this commission, but, and this is important, has been consistently outvoted by BHL’s Mindless Minions when it comes to disbursing the funds.  Which is what happens when only one person dedicated to protecting the public’s interest is on a commission.

We’ve seen some of the grifters who appear to have gotten money solely because of their fealty to BHL.  BHL’s Chief of Staff is supposedly in charge of tracking how the funds are used.  Except she hasn’t.  Some of Bethany’s best buds have gotten a second ’emergency’ grant with absolutely no evidence that they have spent the first grant, and/or have spent it properly.

The response from BHL’s office is absolutely pathetic:

A spokesperson for Hall-Long’s office shared a response letter from Holloway to Davis with Spotlight Delaware.

The letter, dated Tuesday, said a request had been made in November for the DOJ to get access to the monitoring software, but that there was never any follow-up from the DOJ’s office.

I’m confused. Where the fuck does it say in state law that the AG’s office has to ask more than once for information pertinent to the AG’s position as the co-Chair of the Commission?

Not to mention, it has been well-documented that, on multiple occasions over the past few months, the AG has publicly called for the Commission to stop awarding grants until it can be determined that the money is doing what it is supposed to be doing.  I mean, does anybody believe that Trippi Congo, having experienced a $450 K windfall, got right to work fighting the opioid crisis?  I don’t.  But even if one did, shouldn’t an adult audit what he’s doing with that money?

The mind reels.  No doubt BHL will claim this is politically-motivated, just like she has with her totally screwed-up campaign finance reports and the missing money.  (She, BTW, has admitted wrongdoing, albeit ‘inadvertent’ wrongdoing in that case.  A crime is a crime nevertheless.  Plus, her ethically-bankrupt husband served as her treasurer for 20 years.  Puh-leeze.)

The fact is that the Attorney General has sought, and has been denied, access to critical information concerning the Opioid fund despite being co-chair of the Commission overseeing it.  That access has been denied by the Lieutenant Governor and her incompetent and/or unethical staff.

Tell me again why anyone who isn’t knee-deep in her blatant abuse of governmental norms would ever vote for her.

Yesterday, I wrote this:

If you’ve been following the ‘most intriguing’ races series, you will note an overriding theme to most of the races–there’s a Delaware Way candidate and there’s someone challenging the Delaware Way.

The Delaware Way in Dover reflects the insider casual corruption of Pete Schwartzkopf, Our PAL Val Longhurst, and their enablers.

That has been my ongoing theme since I started writing on DL back in 2009.  Perhaps no three primary contests can do more to finally open up government to all the people than the three remaining in this series.

While I’ll provide all the vital district info, I will make the strongest case I possibly can as to why these races need to go in a particular direction in order to make this possible.

RD 14 has been represented by retired State Police Captain and Troop Commander Pete Schwartzkopf since 2002.  It was a new district at the time, having migrated from the Cleland Heights/Elsmere area due to redistricting (Does anybody remember who last represented RD 14 when it was in NCC?).  He served as Majority Leader from 2009-2012, then was elected Speaker of the House.  During that time, his second-in-command was always Val Longhurst.  It is safe to say that they turned the House staff from a happy collegial bunch into a group of good people who were always walking on eggshells.  Having worked in the General Assembly from 1983 to 2009, I could never remember leadership governing through fear like that.

Schwartzkopf stepped down as Speaker in 2023, but remained on to finish his term, with Longhurst as Speaker.

The District is solidly Democratic and increasingly more progressive, with a large and active LGBTQ+ community.  This coastal Suxco district has 9668 D’s, 6944 R’s, and 6002 I’s.  This is a rare district where the I’s skew more D than R.  Enough so to have given Russ Huxtable the win over Pete protege/ex-cop Steve Smyk in the 2022 Senate election in SD 6.  Here is the map of the district.

This is a three-way race between disgraced former State Auditor Kathleen McGuiness, Marty Rendon, and Claire Snyder-Hall, who is the former Executive Director for Common Cause Delaware.

Were there a Hall Of Fame for Delaware Way miscreants, KMG would be a first-ballot candidate.   Not just because she was the rare Delaware official to be tried and convicted.  Not just because of her affair with Ernie Lopez that effectively ended his political career among other things (and let us not forget that when Pete was fishing around for a candidate to keep someone more progressive from getting elected, he approached Lopez).  But the one that gets me is how someone (I think it was Pete) got the Department Of Elections, then under the not-so-watchful eye of Elaine Manlove, to rule that KMG was eligible to vote and run for office in Delaware even though she had voted in Park City Utah which, according to State law, made her ineligible to run for office back then.  A classic example of Delaware Way corruption.  Likely due to that same threat/promise conundrum that the current Director of Elections faces with a certain candidate for Governor.

The 14th RD voters already soundly rejected KMG’s first attempt to regain (or, more accurately, retain) political office despite Speaker Pete’s efforts to get her reelected.  Which reminds me–remember when Schwartzkopf literally disappeared when even Val Longhurst realized that keeping KMG in office was a bad look?  Here is when he finally resurfaced–and wouldn’t take any questions about KMG.

Pete hasn’t given up.  He’s dragged his tired carcass and her tired carcass to every RW radio station that needs to fill time.  He needs to be there b/c, on her own, she is incapable of making even the weakest case for herself.  In so doing, Pete’s told us what he fears most:  the election of Claire Snyder-Hall to the General Assembly.  He’s blasted her on the radio, in the papers, and in KMG’s campaign pieces.  Why?  Because she represents an existential threat to the hegemony of the Delaware Way. She has been a passionate advocate for open and transparent government, including an Inspector General, and has pissed off Pete and loads of others along the way.  (BTW, here is a piece she wrote back in 2022 that is quite prescient.)

I think there’s another reason.  I think she’s leading.  Not sure whether Marty or KMG is in second, but first you have to slay the front-runner.

I like Marty Rendon.  First time I talked to him I realized that my first campaign was also his first campaign.  Sadly, it was on behalf of George McGovern back in 1972.  He supports progressive causes.   He would be a marked improvement over Schwartzkopf.  But everything I hear from down there is that he’s not in a position to win.

So, in a choice between two candidates, there really is no choice if you demand more transparent and responsive government.  And an end to the Casual Corruption Of The Delaware Way.  Claire Snyder-Hall will bring real change to Dover.

You all know Dr. Frank Burns.  He almost defeated Mike Ramone in 2022 and likely hastened Ramone’s decision to abandon his home turf for Sussex County.  And a race for Governor.  Burns is a true progressive, twice endorsed by WFP, who has helped to train other progressive candidates for office.  He gives back.

His campaign opponent is The Other Mike Smith, who recently arrived in Delaware  from (take your pick) Alabama  and/or Illinois, got a job working for Pete and Val, and was gifted money for a not-for-profit start-up by Mumsy and Daddy.  Or somebody.  Got $175K from somebody in 2022 despite not yet having lived in the state for even a year.  His tax forms don’t say from who (or is it whom), but, if he is being lawful, it must be from his family.  Paid himself over $46K while he was allegedly working for the General Assembly. Oh, check out this so-called ‘not-for-profit’ and tell me what it does other than serve as a photo op for ‘The Other Mike Smith’. Or, um ‘did’.  Gave out some leaf-blowers and LED bulbs. Allegedly.  Hasn’t been updated since September of 2023.  Doesn’t look like it exists.  (Hmmm, wonder if Smith has applied for an Opioid Slush Fund grant–you know,to teach addicts to operate leaf blowers–or something.)  BTW, the alleged location of this not-for-profit is/was Lewes, which, far as I can tell, isn’t in RD 21.  Here is how he describes himself:

Michael Smith is an energy economist who has worked in think tanks, consulting firms and political campaigns. He was driven to use that experience to facilitate the installation of clean energy infrastructure across Delaware. Michael founded Powering Our Future to do exactly that, and now serves as our Executive Director.

He bills himself as a ‘founder of a founder of an environmental non-profit’ on his lit, which sounds great–until/unless you realize there’s no there there.  Here’s his bio. Check out his ‘brush with greatness’ attempt to imply that he’s been endorsed by several members of the Philadelphia Eagles.  I know smarm when I see it.  I just saw it.

Frank Burns, OTOH, is a real leader.  Check out this bio:

Dr. Burns established the first diagnostic molecular pathology laboratory at the MCP/Hahnemann (Now Drexel) medical school and latter directed the molecular Pathology and onco-cytogentics laboratories at Thomas Jefferson Medical school. He continued research on the underlying mechanisms of disease while developing and putting into use nucleic acid-based tests for patient diagnosis. He was one of the founding members of the Association for Molecular Pathology and co-authored the first set of guidelines for teaching nucleic acid-based diagnostics to medical residents in pathology programs. His laboratory was first in the Delaware Valley to offer HIV viral load testing for patients not in research programs at a time when the early detection of treatment failure provided by this method was critical to keeping patients alive.

An opportunity to actually prevent disease, rather than diagnose and guide its treatment beckoned and Dr. Burns joined Qualicon, a small biotech company in Wilmington, developing DNA based methods to screen the food supply for pathogens. DuPont, one of the partners in the Qualicon business, took over the company. Dr. Burns developed, patented, and DuPont commercialized several improved diagnostic methods for pathogen detection in food production. Several of these methods were adopted world-wide by industry and government food safety regulators agencies alike.

Could you imagine how much good someone with Burns’ background could do in Dover?

Smith is young, has ‘ants in his pants’ to get elected,  so, from that perspective, he’s formidable.  With Mike Ramone having vacated the premises, the district will likely flip.  Registration figures are 8187 D; 4823 R; and 5904 I.  Here is the district map for this Pike Creek/Newark-area district.

There is one more reason to support Frank Burns–Burns has pledged to push for progressive leadership in the Democratic Caucus.  Smith owes his job to the current Speaker.