During last year’s Merit Shop Division meeting, much of the discussion centered around keeping DCA’s focus on common ground issues. The subject of political elections rose to the forefront of the talk. With DCA’s diverse membership there are diverse perspectives on the people elected to write Delaware’s laws. The Merit Shop members in attendance stressed the need to ensure our membership, from owners to office staff to those working in the field, know how important their vote is to the construction industry. The conversation stressed that it is not DCA’s place to tell our members who to vote for, but it is important that we convey the impact voting can have on our industry.

Following the past two elections, the Delaware General Assembly has seen considerable changes and we know that trend is continuing. Following September’s primary, some long term incumbents were defeated and with the retirement of several other members, we know there will be even more new people serving in the General Assembly. All the information a Delaware voter needs to vote in next Tuesday’s general election can be found here. Both early voting sites, which are open ten days prior to election day, and election day voting sites based upon a voter’s home address can be found here. Polls will be open Tuesday, November 8, from 7 am to 8 pm.

The candidates for all public offices up for election on Tuesday can be found here. Due to the decennial census, all 62 seats in Delaware’s General Assembly are up for election but many do not have general election opponents. With so many new people running, I do not personally know all of the candidates. With this in mind, if you have questions regarding a candidate, I am happy to share with you what I do know about them and any impact their potential election may have on the construction industry.

Non-presidential election years tend to see low voter turnout and this year may even be lower than normal given Delaware’s lone congressional seat is the top of the ticket. Whoever you choose to support, your vote is important.