By Vil Ramunno and George Rotsch, Contributing Journalists, DelawareLIVE News

DOVER, Del. — When David Sokola won his first state Senate race in 1990, Mike Castle was governor.

“I was first elected back in 1990 during the Castle Administration,” Sokola said in January, when he announced he would retire.
He is one of 13 members of the Delaware General Assembly, six Republicans and seven Democrats, who won’t be back when lawmakers return in January. Some have held their seats for years without a challenger. Rep. Ronald E. Gray, who represents the Bethany Beach area, didn’t have an opponent in any of his last three elections. Sen. Dave Lawson, a retired state trooper, has held his western Kent County seat since 2010.

Delaware LIVE is watching seven races for open seats on Tuesday’s ballot. Four of them, all House seats held by Republicans, could also decide something bigger: whether one party has enough votes to amend the Delaware Constitution, which requires two-thirds of both the Senate and the House. Democrats currently have two-thirds in the Senate. However, they are one seat short in the House.

What to know

• Several of the people leaving ran for years with no opponent. In recent elections, only one candidate was on the ballot for their seats. This year, every race on our list has both a Democrat and a Republican.
• Many lawmakers face no opponent. Of the 38 lawmakers running again for their seats, 18 have no opponent on Tuesday’s ballot.
• One race came down to seven votes. In September’s Republican primary for House District 33, Morgan Hudson beat Matt Bucher 1,017 to 1,010.

What’s at stake

The Delaware Constitution is the state’s highest law. Amending it takes a two-thirds vote in both the House and the Senate, twice: once by the current General Assembly and again by the next one, after an election. Amendments passed this way don’t go to voters.

Table 1:What it takes to amend the Delaware Constitution

Chamber
Votes needed
Democrats in office now
Republicans in office now

Senate
14 of 21
15
6

House
28 of 41
27 (1 short)
14

(Votes needed are two-thirds of each chamber, under Article XVI of the Delaware Constitution. Seats held as of Oct. 31, 2026, before Tuesday’s election, from the General Assembly’s House and Senate member lists.)
Going into Tuesday, Democrats have enough votes in the Senate and are one short in the House. Those numbers aren’t locked in. Every House seat and 11 of the 21 Senate seats are on the ballot, so either party can gain or lose ground. Four of the races on our list, House Districts 4, 33, 38 and 41, are seats Republicans hold now.

The Delaware LIVE seven races to watch

At the top of the ballot, U.S. Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat, faces Republican Michael Katz, a doctor and former state senator. Below are the seven races we’re watching. Table 2 shows all of them at a glance, including how many people in each party have voted so far. These numbers show who has voted, not who they voted for.

Swipe sideways to see all columns →

Table 2:The seven races, and who has voted so farEarly and absentee voters as of Sunday afternoon, Nov. 1, by party registration, not how they voted. Smaller numbers are each party’s registered voters.

Seat
On the Nov. 3 ballot
Voted so far, by party registration

Dem.
Rep.
Everyone
else

State treasurer
Statewide
Colleen Davis, not running
Ted Lauzen (D)
Mike Ramone (R)
76,769
of 332,771
40,343
of 199,647
28,061
of 277,468

Senate District 15
Kent
Dave Lawson, retiring after 16 years
Nisha Lodhavia (D)
Emily A. Thompson (R)
2,465
of 11,196
2,378
of 14,279
1,203
of 14,939

House District 4
Sussex
Jeff Hilovsky, retiring after 4 years
Gregg Lindner (D)
Dan Zitofsky (R)
4,181
of 8,310
3,757
of 9,600
2,209
of 9,186

House District 33
Kent
Charles S. Postles Jr., retiring after 10 years
Joshua Pennington (D)
Morgan Hudson (R)
1,503
of 6,130
1,334
of 6,481
815
of 7,398

House District 38
Sussex
Ronald E. Gray, retiring after 14 years
Maureen Madden (D)
Carlie Carey (R)
4,450
of 7,503
5,525
of 11,562
2,644
of 8,335

House District 41
Sussex
Richard G. Collins, retiring after 12 years
Ryan Stuckey (D)
John Atkins (R)
2,004
of 6,519
2,302
of 9,253
1,030
of 7,787

New Castle County Council, District 3
New Castle
Janet Kilpatrick, retiring after 16 years
Kira Alejandro (D)
Melissa S. Brayman (R)
3,098
1,207
1,166

(Note: Years in office are counted from the year each member was first elected. Party is how voters are registered, not how they voted. Statewide totals add up all 21 state Senate districts. Registration totals by county council district are not published in the state’s reports. Registered voters are as of Oct. 1. Ballots are as of Sunday afternoon, Nov. 1; Election Day votes are not included. Sources: Delaware Department of Elections, Election Voted List, obtained by Delaware LIVE [Nov. 1, 2026]; Voter Registration Totals by Senate District and Representative District [Oct. 1, 2026]; and the candidate list [Oct. 30, 2026].)

State treasurer

Democrat Ted Lauzen vs. Republican Mike Ramone

Treasurer Colleen Davis, a Democrat, is not on the ballot. She won the office in 2022 with 53.6% of the vote.

• Ted Lauzen of Wilmington is campaigning as a financial expert.  He is an investment manager, a former Marine combat pilot and the board treasurer of the Delaware YMCA, according to his campaign. At an Oct. 8 forum hosted by the Wilmington Rotary Club, he said the treasurer’s main job is to protect public money as the state’s fiduciary, and he pledged to make public how the office chooses banks and investment partners. He won the Sept. 15 Democratic primary with 45.3% of the vote over Mike Miller and Michael Alexander Smith.
• Mike Ramone of Newark is campaigning as the best chance for transparency and accountability for the voters’ money. He represented the 21st District in the state House from 2008 to 2024 and led House Republicans as minority leader. He has owned businesses for more than four decades, according to his campaign. At the same forum, he said the treasurer should be an independent watchdog on state spending, since Democrats control the governor’s office and both chambers of the General Assembly. He was the Republican nominee for governor in 2024 and lost to Democrat Matt Meyer, 56.1% to 43.9%. He had no primary opponent.

Why it matters: It’s the only statewide office on Tuesday’s ballot with no incumbent. As of Sunday afternoon, 76,769 registered Democrats and 40,343 registered Republicans had voted early or by absentee ballot statewide.

Senate District 15: western Kent County

Democrat Nisha Lodhavia vs. Republican Emily A. Thompson

Republican state Sen. Dave Lawson is leaving after four terms. He was first elected in 2010 and had no opponent in 2022. In 2020, he won with 55.3% of the vote.

• Nisha Lodhavia taught at Delaware Technical Community College’s Terry Campus and at Wesley College, and raised her two daughters in Camden-Wyoming, according to her campaign. She is running on lowering costs, public schools, health care, small businesses and farming. She had no primary opponent.
• Emily A. Thompson lives on her family’s farm in Hartly and has worked in state government for nearly a decade, overseeing programs for children and families, according to her campaign. She holds a doctorate in prevention science from Wilmington University. She is running on supporting farms and small businesses, early education for children, and responsible government spending. Lawson endorsed her. She had no primary opponent.

Why it matters: This seat hasn’t had a contested general election since 2020. Republicans have about 3,100 more registered voters, but as of Sunday afternoon, more registered Democrats (2,465) than registered Republicans (2,378) had voted.

House District 4: Long Neck, Oak Orchard and Angola

Democrat Gregg Lindner vs. Republican Dan Zitofsky

Republican state Rep. Jeff Hilovsky is leaving after two terms. He was elected in 2022 as the first legislator to serve this district after redistricting moved it to Sussex County.

• Gregg Lindner led a media and marketing business operating in the United States and Latin America and served on an elected school board, according to his campaign. He ran for this seat in 2024 and lost to Hilovsky, 58% to 42%. He is running on roads and schools, controlled growth and public education. He had no primary opponent.
• Dan Zitofsky is a Navy veteran of the Persian Gulf War and a retired New York City police officer who responded on 9/11, according to his campaign. He is running on making large developments pay for roads, drainage and emergency services before residents move in. He had no primary opponent.

Why it matters: Lindner is running for this seat again, this time with no incumbent in the race. Republicans have about 1,300 more registered voters, but as of Sunday afternoon, more registered Democrats (4,181) than registered Republicans (3,757) had voted.

House District 33: Kent County

Democrat Joshua Pennington vs. Republican Morgan Hudson

Republican state Rep. Charles S. Postles Jr., a poultry grower and former Milford School Board president, is leaving after five terms. He was first elected in 2016 and had no opponent in 2022 or 2024.

• Joshua Pennington of Magnolia has spent several years in nonprofit work advocating for people with disabilities, according to his campaign. He grew up in Bowers, where his family has served with the Bowers Volunteer Fire Company, and he was a cadet there. He is running on supporting first responders, people with disabilities and seniors, education and mental health. He had no primary opponent.
• Morgan Hudson of Milford is vice president and head of human resources at her family’s construction cleaning business, manages rental properties, is vice chair of the Kent County Board of Adjustment and is president of the Frederica Senior Center board, according to her campaign. She is running on small businesses, family farms, seniors, education, health care and public safety. She won the Sept. 15 Republican primary by seven votes, 1,017 to 1,010, over Matt Bucher.

Why it matters: Of the districts on our list, it has the smallest gap between registered Republicans and registered Democrats: Republicans are ahead by about 350 voters. As of Sunday afternoon, more registered Democrats (1,503) than registered Republicans (1,334) had voted.

House District 38: Bethany Beach to Fenwick Island

Democrat Maureen Madden vs. Republican Carlie Carey

Republican state Rep. Ronald E. Gray, an engineer, is leaving after seven terms. He was first elected in 2012 and had no opponent in 2020, 2022 or 2024. The district includes Bethany Beach, Fenwick Island, Selbyville and Ocean View.

• Maureen Madden of Dagsboro retired from federal service after nearly 23 years at NASA and more than seven at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), where she was a deputy director of a satellite research center, according to her campaign. She is running on slowing overdevelopment, affordable housing and adding voting and reproductive rights to state law and the state constitution. She had no primary opponent.
• Carlie Carey grew up in the district and graduated from Indian River High School, according to her campaign. She and her husband opened a farm-to-table restaurant in Fenwick Island and sold it in 2022. She now owns a ceramics studio and works on the couple’s 16-acre farm. She is running on supporting small businesses, protecting the environment, and affordable, reliable energy. Gray endorsed her. She had no primary opponent.

Why it matters: As of Sunday afternoon, 5,525 registered Republicans and 4,450 registered Democrats had voted, the largest gap in favor of registered Republicans among the seven races. Still, a larger share of registered Democrats (59%) than registered Republicans (48%) has voted.

House District 41: Sussex County

Democrat Ryan Stuckey vs. Republican John Atkins

Republican state Rep. Richard G. Collins, a farmer and former insurance business owner, is leaving after six terms. He was first elected in 2014. In 2024, he won with 64.4% of the vote.

• Ryan Stuckey was born in Sussex County, was raised by a single mother and owns a coffee shop on Main Street, according to his campaign. He says he served on a planning and zoning commission and rewrote local rules to control development and protect forests. He is running on roads, schools and slowing development. He had no primary opponent.
• John Atkins campaigns through a Facebook page and does not have a campaign website. He won the Sept. 15 Republican primary with 48.7% of the vote, 67 votes ahead of Doug Conaway.

Why it matters: Collins won this seat by 28 points in 2024. As of Sunday afternoon, more registered Republicans (2,302) than registered Democrats (2,004) had voted.

New Castle County Council, District 3

Democrat Kira Alejandro vs. Republican Melissa S. Brayman

Republican Councilwoman Janet Kilpatrick, first elected in 2010, is retiring after 16 years. She had no opponent in 2022. The district covers the Pike Creek, Hockessin, Yorklyn and Newark areas.

• Kira Alejandro of Yorklyn has worked for about a decade in specialty coffee and small local businesses and has never held elected office. At an Oct. 7 forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of New Castle County, she said she would protect people on fixed incomes from county tax increases, wants a pause on approving new data centers, and takes no money from developers, land use attorneys or corporations. She won the Sept. 15 Democratic primary with 68.8% of the vote over Kyle R. Grantham.
• Melissa S. Brayman of Pike Creek is director of administration and finance at the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce and has never held elected office. At the same forum, she pledged to vote against any new county tax increase, said she opposes data centers in residential areas but would not back a pause if defending it costs taxpayers money, and said she has not taken money from developers. She had no primary opponent.

Why it matters: At the forum, both candidates named affordability as the county’s most urgent problem. As of Sunday afternoon, 5,471 people in the district had voted: 3,098 registered Democrats, 1,207 registered Republicans and 1,166 everyone else.

What happens next

When the new General Assembly meets in January, at least 14 of its 62 seats will have a new lawmaker. That includes the 13 departing members’ seats plus House District 23, because Rep. Mara Gorman is running for Sokola’s Senate seat instead of her House seat.

Lawmakers will then decide whether to give final approval to eight proposed amendments to the state constitution that the current General Assembly has already passed once. They cover topics including early voting, absentee voting, marriage and the death penalty. Each one needs a two-thirds vote in both the House and the Senate again, so it matters whether either party has enough seats to pass or block them on its own.

Voting Tuesday

Polls are open Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You vote at your own polling place. Not sure which districts you’re in or where to vote? Delaware LIVE’s 2026 Voters Guide has your polling place and every name on your ballot. It will also have election results Tuesday night.
(About this story: Election results, candidate filings and voter registration totals are from the Delaware Department of Elections. Lawmakers’ years in office are from the Delaware General Assembly and its caucus websites. Candidate backgrounds are from each candidate’s campaign website and from Delaware LIVE’s coverage of the Oct. 7 League of Women Voters of New Castle County forum and the Oct. 8 Wilmington Rotary Club forum. Early-vote counts are from the Election Voted List, obtained by Delaware LIVE [Nov. 1, 2026].)