Delaware
Delaware effort to protect absentee voting as ‘absolute right’ advances
When will Delaware’s 2026 midterm elections take place?
Delaware’s midterm elections are coming up. Here’s what voters need to know before heading to the polls.
A Delaware constitutional amendment that would ensure absentee voting is available to all qualified voters passed the Senate again April 14, advancing a measure supporters say removes unnecessary barriers to casting a ballot.
Under current law, absentee voting is limited to voters who cannot cast a ballot in person for specific reasons, including disability, illness, religion, military service or caregiving.
The amendment, sponsored by Sen. Darius Brown, would establish an “absolute right” to vote absentee, allowing voters to request a ballot without providing an excuse. The proposal followed a 2022 Delaware Supreme Court ruling that struck down the broad use of absentee voting in the state.
A House amendment to the bill introduced by Rep. William Bush would remove permanent absentee status from the legislation, requiring ballot requests for each election. Permanent absentee status allowed voters unable to vote in person – including those with disabilities, in the military or living overseas – to automatically receive a ballot. That amendment cleared the House floor March 26.
On April 14, the adjusted amendment cleared the Senate with 14 lawmakers in favor, 5 against and 2 absent.
The bill already passed the Senate last year. However, given legislative rules, the bill was sent back to its original chamber to consider the House amendment.
Because this is a first-leg amendment, it will also require passage in the next, all-new General Assembly to make it to the state’s constitution.
Brown has also backed a related amendment that would permit early, in-person voting in primaries as well as general and special elections. Under the proposal, early voting would begin 10 calendar days before an election.
The amendment cleared both the Senate and the House, and like its legislative sibling, will also need the approval of the next General Assembly.
Olivia Montes covers state government and community impact for Delaware Online/The News Journal. If you have a tip or a story idea, reach out to her at omontes@delawareonline.com.
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Ciro Poppiti has transformed himself into Founding Father Caesar Rodney.
Poppiti is a lawyer, National Guardsman, actor and the elected register of wills in Delaware’s New Castle County — the same office Rodney once held in his county.
On June 12 and 13, Poppiti will ride horseback from Delaware to Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, retracing Rodney’s historic 1776 journey that helped secure support for American independence.
Rodney raced through a storm after learning at midnight that he needed to break a tie in Delaware’s delegation on the vote for independence from England.
“You’ve got to get to Philadelphia by three o’clock, four o’clock the next day,” Poppiti said while portraying Rodney. “The gavel is coming in otherwise everything you have done is now destroyed.”
Rodney famously wore a green scarf to hide a cancerous formation on his face.
While Rodney rode horse trails from Dover to Philadelphia, Poppiti’s route will follow modern roads, including Route 13 through Claymont and Delaware County before heading up Passyunk Avenue to Independence Hall.
Poppiti said the ride is taking place in June because the actual anniversary in early July will coincide with World Cup events in Philadelphia.
Well-trained Amish horses and a buggy will accompany the ride to help make the trip safer on busy modern roads.
Rodney remains a controversial figure for some because his family owned slaves on their Kent County farm.
During protests following George Floyd’s death in 2020, Rodney’s statue was removed from Rodney Square in Wilmington. The statue is now displayed in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C.
“We have critics, critics who want to damn Caesar Rodney because he had slaves and they should,” Poppiti said. “We embrace those who are critical of Rodney because those who are critical of him are helping us and they’re fulfilling our mission. Our mission is to tell the whole story warts and all and to expose the fact that it was all people of all colors that helped make the greatest upset in world history happen.”
More information about the reenactment ride, including related events such as a gala and concert, is available at 250ride.org.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC Philadelphia. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC Philadelphia journalist edited the article for publication.
“I grow old gracefully,” said Susan Young Browne, who just received permission to keep driving until 115 years old.
That’s a testament to Browne enduring aptitude (and attitude) for life; having recently celebrated her 108th Birthday at the Modern Maturity Center in Dover, Delaware.
Browne was in Delaware in 1918 during Segregation where she worked on a farm with her family sans water or electricity. She would eventually attend Delaware State College for Colored Students, today known as Delaware State University, and graduate in 1945, going on to teach in a one-room school house.
Married twice, she enjoys the company of a clan of children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
Nowadays, she can be found three times a work at the Modern Maturity Center where she enjoys group exercise classes; staying active is a key to that graceful aging she mentioned.
“When I get up in the morning, I have an exercise routine that I’ve been doing for the last 20 years,” she said. “When I retired and I walked around that classroom for 30 years, I am not going to sit down.”
SPRITELY ELDERS:
130 people attended her birthday party, including the Delaware Governor Matt Meyer, where she was gifted a parking spot right in front of the building reserved for those 100 years or older.
That’s important, because as Ms. Browne told those assembled to celebrate her life, the state had just reissued her driver’s license until 2033.
WATCH the story below from CBS News…
SHARE Ms. Susan Brown With Your Friends Who Need a Little Inspiration…
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