Delaware House of Representatives

Delaware House of Representatives
Delaware General Assembly
Type
Type	Lower house
Term limits	None
New session started	January 11, 2011
Leadership
Speaker of the House	Robert F. Gilligan, (D) since January 13, 2009
Majority Leader	Peter Schwartzkopf, (D) since January 13, 2009
Minority Leader	Gregory Lavelle, (R) since January 11, 2011
Structure
Members	41
Political groups	Democratic Party (26) Republican Party (15)
Length of term	2 years
Authority	Article III, Section 1, Delaware Constitution
Salary	$41,680/year + per diem
Elections
Last election	November 2, 2010 (41 seats)
Next election	November 6, 2012 (41 seats)
Redistricting	Legislative Control
Meeting place
House of Representatives Chamber Delaware Legislative Hall Dover, Delaware
Website
Delaware House of Representatives

The Delaware House of Representatives is the lower house of the Delaware General Assembly; the state legislature of the US state of Delaware. It is composed of 41 Representatives from an equal amount of constituencies, each of whom is elected to a two year term. The Delaware General Assembly does not have term limits. The House meets at the Delaware Legislative Hall in Dover.

The naming of the House

From 1776 to 1792, the chamber was known as the House of Assembly, a common name for lower houses of colonial legislatures and states under the loose Confederation. The name was changed by the state's 1792 Constitution, reflecting the new federal House of Representatives, which Delaware was the first state to approve of in ratifying the federal U.S. Constitution in 1787. The renaming began a trend that has resulted in a majority of the lower houses of U.S. state legislatures sharing the same name of the U.S. House.

Leadership of the House

The Speaker of the House presides over the House of Representatives. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the full House through the passage of a House Resolution. The Speaker is the chief leadership position of the body. The other House leaders are elected by their respective party caucuses. The Majority Leader determines which bills are brought to the floor for debate (from an Agenda prepared by the Speaker of the House) and manages debates and floor votes.

The current Speaker of the House is Robert Gilligan of District 19 (Sherwood Park). Prior to Gilligan's election, the prior Speaker of the House, Terry Spence, was the longest serving speaker in the History of the Delaware General Assembly.

Qualifications

Members of the House of Representatives must be citizens of the United States, have lived in Delaware for three years, been a resident of their constituent district for at least one year preceding their election and must be at least 24 years old by the time of their election.

Current composition

The strong Democratic turnout in 2008, aided by homestate Senator Joe Biden, cost Republicans the majority in the State House. As of 2009, Democrats control all three branches of state government.

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)		Total
	Democratic	Republican		Vacant
End of previous legislature	24	17	41	0
Begin	26	15	41	0
Latest voting share	63.4%	36.6%

Current members, 2011–2012

District	Name	Party	First Elected	Residence
1	Dennis Williams	Dem	1996	Wilmington North
2	Stephanie Bolden	Dem	2010
3	Helene Keeley	Dem	1996	Wilmington South
4	Gerald Brady	Dem	2006	Wilmington West
5	Melanie George	Dem	2002	Bear/Newark
6	Debra Heffernan	Dem	2010
7	Bryon Short	Dem	2007
8	S. Quinton Johnson	Dem	2008	Middletown
9	Rebecca Walker	Dem	2010
10	Dennis Williams	Dem	2008	Talleyville
11	Gregory Lavelle	Rep	2000	Sharpley
12	Deborah Hudson	Rep	2000	Fairthorne
13	John Mitchell Jr.	Dem	2006	Elsmere
14	Peter Schwartzkopf	Dem	2002	Rehoboth
15	Valerie Longhurst	Dem	2004	Bear
16	James Johnson	Dem	2002	Jefferson Farms
17	Michael Mulrooney	Dem	1998	Pennwood
18	Michael Barbieri	Dem	2008	Newark
19	Robert Gilligan	Dem	1972	Sherwood Park
20	Nick T. Manolakos	Rep	2006	Limestone Hills
21	Michael Ramone	Rep	2008	Drummond Hill
22	Joseph Miro	Rep	1998	Pike Creek Valley
23	Teresa Schooley	Dem	2004	Newark
24	Edward Osienski	Dem	2010
25	John Kowalko, Jr.	Dem	2006	Newark South
26	John Viola	Dem	1998	Newark
27	Earl Jaques, Jr.	Dem	2008	Glasgow
28	William Carson, Jr.	Dem	2008	Smyrna
29	Lincoln Willis	Rep	2010
30	William Outten	Rep	2004	Harrington
31	Darryl Scott	Dem	2008	Dover
32	E. Bradford Bennett	Dem	2008	Dover
33	Harold Peterman	Rep	2010
34	Donald Blakey	Rep	2006
35	David Wilson	Rep	2008	Bridgeville
36	Harvey Kenton	Rep	2010
37	Ruth Briggs King	Rep	2009	Georgetown/Lewes
38	Gerald Hocker	Rep	2002	Ocean View
39	Daniel Short	Rep	2006	Seaford
40	Clifford "Biff" Lee	Rep	2000	Laurel
41	John Atkins	Dem	2008 (2003–2006)	Millsboro

See also

• Delaware State Capitol
• Delaware General Assembly
• Delaware Senate

External links

• Delaware House of Representatives