Delaware

Delaware GOP, shut out again in statewide races, grapples for ways to regain relevance

Published

1 year ago

November 8, 2024

Delaware GOP, shut out again in statewide races, grapples for ways to regain relevance

Party faithful short on specifics about how to rebound

So how does the Delaware GOP, which hasn’t had a governor since 1992 or a member of Congress since 2010, mount a rebound to even be seriously competitive in statewide races, let alone win them?

Party faithful who gathered Tuesday night at the Hilton near Newark offered various thoughts, but were short on specifics and tangible ways to grow their numbers. Still, they accepted their current diminished status and celebrated live reports that former President Donald Trump looked to be regaining the White House.

Colmery, a retired respiratory therapist who now sells real estate, stated the obvious. “You try to flip the Democrats and the independents,’’ she said.

But how the GOP could close the registration gap and attract candidates that appeal in large numbers to Democrats and non-affiliated voters, was a far thornier question for Colmery. Instead of offering concrete strategic tactics, she responded by criticizing Meyer and current Gov. John Carney, who will become mayor of Wilmington in January. Both are Democrats.

Colmery also cited the Democrats’ near-total control of Wilmington, where few Republicans even bother to seek office.

“Wilmington’s a big problem because that’s never going to change,’’ she said. “I mean, they just brought in Carney as their mayor. Are you kidding me?”

She said Wilmington’s families raise their children in the Democratic tradition. “That’s all they know,’’ she said. “And no one’s educating them on what’s actually going on in the world. They don’t know.”

However, Colmery’s inflammatory and unsubstantiated rhetoric about the residents in Delaware’s largest city is largely irrelevant statewide because Wilmington only has about 7% of the state’s population of roughly 1 million people.

Besides, Wilmington was overwhelmingly Democratic in the early 1990s, when Delaware had barely 700,000 residents and Republicans held several statewide posts and controlled the state House.

The reality is that far more of the 300,000 new residents over the last three decades have been Democrats, and they have increasingly voted for members of their own party.

Wilmington’s influence on elections was a theme repeated by several Republicans in the crowd Tuesday, including John Zeron, who owns a Newark chimney sweeping company.

Even though Sussex and Kent counties have higher poverty rates than New Castle County, and some towns in Sussex and Kent have higher poverty rates than Wilmington, Zeron echoed Colmery’s sentiments.

John Zeron (left), who runs a small chimney sweeping company, says the party needs to focus on attracting and helping people with businesses. (Cris Barrish/WHYY)

He said too many New Castle County and Wilmington-area residents receive benefits from government entitlement programs, so they don’t see the Republican party as a viable political home.

But for Republicans to gain legions of new voters statewide, Zeron said the party needs to focus on people like him.

“What Republicans need to do is really focus on the businessman,” Zeron said before immediately pivoting to a grievance about Democratic-led regulatory rules.

“I’m a business owner and I’ve only got three employees. I would like to have more employees. I would like to grow my business, but the cards are stacked against me.”

‘We don’t want open borders. We want our guns, our country.’

Josie Herninko wasn’t expecting wins Tuesday night, however.

“But I think maybe in a few years, if we keep at it with the grassroots movement, if the people really get out there and really work, we might have a chance, maybe in a couple of years,’’ said Herninko, a retiree.

But while Trump and his Make America Great Again movement won the nation’s popular vote as well as Pennsylvania and six other so-called swing states to regain the presidency, what message would Herninko use to attract voters to Republican red in blue Delaware?

“You gotta just go out there and let them know what your party stands for, what Republican means,’’ she said. “We’re a party of conservatives. We believe in the Constitution. We believe in the rights. We don’t want open borders. We want our guns, our country, that’s what we want.’’

Julianne Murray, the state’s GOP chairperson and a former unsuccessful candidate for governor and attorney general, acknowledged the steep hurdles her party must overcome to once again be a force in Delaware.

“We are the third party in this state,’’ she said, noting that the GOP’s 209,000 registered voters trail not only the Democrats’ 354,000, but also the 228,000 who are not affiliated with any party or belong to a minor party.

“Those numbers are just super tough to deal with,’’ Murray said. “So the pitch has to be, that I’ll be making, is that we are right on the policies.”

She said progressive Democrats are exerting far too much pull on the ruling party but as of now, “people aren’t suffering enough [from their governance]. So I’m going to continue to say, ‘Look, the Republican party is alive.’ People have to do some soul searching and kind of figure it out. We also have to put a concerted effort into bringing the unaffiliated back in.”

McCann, a retired general in the Delaware Army National Guard, said the march will be a long one, and noted that from 1969 to 1970, his party held all statewide elective seats.

“So it took 50 years for us to lose it. I’m betting it’s gonna take us 25 to get this back,’’ McCann said. “You don’t get it all back in one day. It’s a building process. It’s one person at a time.”

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Delaware

State Police seek help locating woman wanted on warrants in Delaware & Chenango Counties

Published

8 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Press Room

State Police seek help locating woman wanted on warrants in Delaware & Chenango Counties

DELAWARE COUNTY, N.Y. (WBNG) — New York State Police are asking for help locating a woman with active warrants in both Delaware and Chenango County.

According to police, Alora S. Stott, 25, of Oneonta, is wanted on warrants after failing to appear for scheduled court dates.

The court dates were related to charges Stott is facing including criminal possession of a forged instrument and criminal possession of stolen property.

The charges stem from her arrest in Delaware County in January, at which time state troopers found Stott in possession of a stolen checkbook and multiple forged and stolen checks.

In addition to these charges, Stott faces an additional charge of criminal possession of stolen property after police found her and three others in possession of a stolen truck in Chenango County.

Anyone with information regarding her whereabouts is asked to contact the New York State Police at 607-561-7400.

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Delaware

Delaware man charged with possessing

Published

20 hours ago

December 2, 2025

Press Room

A Delaware man is in custody and facing federal charges after several guns were found in his home, along with apparent plans to attack the University of Delaware Police Department, prosecutors and federal court documents say.

Luqmaan Khan, 25, was charged last Wednesday with illegally possessing a machine gun, Acting U.S. Attorney Julianne Murray announced in a news release.

Khan, a University of Delaware student, allegedly drew up the layout of a UDel police station and made comments to investigators about martyrdom, according to Murray and court documents filed in the U.S. District Court in Wilmington.

Authorities say Khan was stopped by New Castle County police officers late on the night of Monday, Nov. 24. The officers were in Canby Park West when they spotted a white Toyota Tacoma truck and stopped the vehicle.

Khan was inside the truck and did not comply with officers’ orders to exit the truck. He was then taken into custody for resisting arrest, Murray said.

Inside the truck, officers found a .357 Glock handgun with a stabilizing brace kit attached, along with more magazines and an armored ballistic plate, and a composition notebook.

A drawing that federal prosecutors allege was part of a notebook found in Luqmaan Khan’s residence. Authorities say this page included a sketch of the layout of a University of Delaware police station.

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

In the notebook, there were notes about more weapons and how they could be used to attack the University of Delaware Police Department.

“The notebook referenced a member of the University of Delaware’s Police Department by name, and included a layout of a building with entry and exit points under which the words ‘UD Police Station’ were printed,” Murray said.

Khan also referenced “martyrdom” in the notebook and stated in an interview with police following his arrest that being a martyr is “one of the greatest things you can do,” and was a goal of his, the affidavit alleges.

University of Delaware Interim President Laura Carlson addressed the charges against Khan in a statement to the university community Tuesday.

Carlson identified Khan as an undergraduate student and said he has been temporarily separated from the university and banned from campus until his legal matters are resolved.

“There are no known or immediate threats to the University of Delaware community. However, the press release describes evidence of a plan that targeted the University of Delaware Police Department (UDPD). This is frightening to all of us,” Carlson wrote. “The press release contains relevant information about the timeline and the actions of the New Castle County Police, the FBI, the Department of Justice and UDPD. I am incredibly grateful to these teams for their diligent investigation and coordination.”

The FBI and New Castle County police obtained a search warrant and searched Khan’s home in Wilmington on Nov. 25. The search turned up another Glock handgun, which was equipped with a “switch,” also referred to as a “Glock switch.”

This is a modification that can turn a standard semi-automatic handgun into a fully automatic one, according to CBS News Philadelphia’s previous reporting. The court documents referred to the Glock with the switch as a “machine gun.”

A rifle was also found in the home, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in court. There are no weapons registered to Khan in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, the document says.

According to the document, Khan is an American citizen who was born in Pakistan. He has no prior convictions on his record.

Khan is being represented by a federal public defender. Court records show he is in custody pending a detention hearing on Dec. 11, at which time a judge could rule whether to release him on certain conditions or keep him incarcerated until the case is resolved.

Ross DiMattei

contributed to this report.

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Delaware

State champ Seaford snags 9 spots on All-Class 1A football first team

Published

1 day ago

December 2, 2025

Press Room

State champ Seaford snags 9 spots on All-Class 1A football first team

Seaford won its first state football championship since 1983 on Nov. 29, edging Newark Charter 21-20 in overtime for the Class 1A title at Delaware State University’s Alumni Stadium.

The Blue Jays were No. 1 again on Dec. 1 when the Delaware Interscholastic Football Coaches Association released the All-Class 1A team.

Seaford earned nine first-team spots and two Player of the Year awards on the team, which was determined by the combined voting of the state’s 17 Class 1A head coaches before the playoffs began.

Brandywine was next with five first-team spots earned. The coaches’ voting was scattered, as 10 teams placed at least one player among the 30 first-team spots.

Seaford quarterback Vince Evans III was voted the Class 1A Offensive Player of the Year, while Blue Jays linebacker Ty’Aire Buffalo was voted Defensive Player of the Year.

Newark Charter guard Josh Horning was named the 1A Lineman of the Year.

Four players made the Class 1A first team on both sides of the ball – Newark’s Deigo Diaz Vallejo (fullback and linebacker), McKean’s Vaughn Brooks (running back and linebacker), Seaford’s Brendan West (running back and defensive tackle) and Conrad’s Charles Shute (tight end and linebacker).

Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on X: @BradMyersTNJ. Follow us on Instagram: @DEGameDay

DIFCA All-Class 1A football

First team

Offense

QB – Vince Evans III, sr., Seaford

FB – Diego Diaz Vallejo, sr., Newark

RB – Vaughn Brooks, sr., McKean

RB – Brendan West, sr., Seaford

WR – Keyon Black, sr., Newark

WR – Jahsir Greene, sr., Brandywine

WR – Jahfarri Payne, sr., Dickinson

WR – Terrence Williams, sr., St. Elizabeth

TE – Charles Shute, sr., Conrad

C – De-Andre Smith, jr., Seaford

G – Nicholas Florencio, sr., St. Elizabeth

G – Josh Horning, sr., Newark Charter

OT – RaKwan Coates, jr., Brandywine

OT – Doubensley Saint Jean, sr., Seaford

Defense

DE – Aizyon Matthews, sr., Seaford

DE – Nicholas Webb, sr., Brandywine

DT – Kaleb Ross, sr., St. Elizabeth

DT – Brendan West, sr. Seaford

DT – Stephan West, sr., Brandywine

LB – Charles Shute, sr., Conrad

LB – Vaughn Brooks, sr., McKean

LB – Ty’Aire Buffalo, jr., Seaford

LB – Diego Diaz Vallejo, sr., Newark

DB – Damier Bryant, sr., First State Military Academy

DB – Ny’gee Horsey, sr., Seaford

DB – Maxwell Laznik, jr., Newark Charter

DB – William Teel, jr., Newark

Special teams

K – Ian Cleghorn, sr., Brandywine

P – Bradley Dunk, sr., Christiana

RET – Taishawn Frisby, jr., Seaford

Second team

Offense

QB – Thomas McGrory, jr., Conr. FB – Je’Viohn Hurst, jr., Sea. RB – Noah Johnson, sr., Chr; Jamar Smith, sr., Gla. WR – Cayden Anderson, jr., NC; Damier Bryant, sr., FSMA. TE – Kaleb Ross, sr., SE. C – Sean Roderiguez, so., Bran. G – Charles Fahnbulleh, jr., Chr; Jason Henn, sr., New. OT – Troy Jones, sr., SE; Kyhir Wheelings, jr., Gla.

Defense

DE – Sully Burkhardt, sr., NC; Johnta Cuffee, sr., New. DT – Charles Fahnbulleh, jr., Chr; Joshua Jalloh, sr., FSMA; Samai Kargbo, sr., Gla. LB – Ajay Bonis, sr., NC; Levi Levin, jr., Bran; Kameryn Swinney, jr., Gla; Terrance Williams, sr., SE. DB – Noah Johnson, sr., Chr; Thomas McGrory, jr., Conr; Zaa’Hir McNair, sr., Bran; Jahfarri Payne, sr., Dic.