The 2018 United States Senate election in Delaware took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

to represent the State of

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate,

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, and various state and

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

. The primary for this U.S. Senate election was held on Thursday, September 6, 2018. The

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

nominated incumbent

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Tom Carper and the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

nominated Sussex County Councilman Rob Arlett. Incumbent Democratic Senator

Tom Carper Thomas Richard Carper (born January 23, 1947) is an American politician and former military officer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Delaware, having held the seat si ...

was re-elected to a fourth term.

Background

Three-term Democratic Senator

was reelected with 66% of the vote in 2012 against Republican Kevin Wade. Carper, incumbent U.S. Senator, was challenged in the Democratic primary by

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

activist Kerri Evelyn Harris. Carper previously faced a primary challenge in the

2012 election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...

from businessman Keith Spanarelli. However, Carper defeated Spanarelli by around 70 points. Carper went on to defeat Harris by around 30 points. It was the most competitive Democratic U.S. Senate primary in Delaware in two decades. The main declared candidates in the Republican primary were Sussex County councilman Rob Arlett and businessman Gene Truono, with a perennial candidacy from businessman

Rocky De La Fuente Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente Guerra (born October 10, 1954) is an American businessman and politician. A perennial candidate, De La Fuente was the Reform Party of the United States of America, Reform Party United States presidential election, nomi ...

, who also ran for Senate in seven other states. Another candidate withdrew before the primary. Rob Arlett defeated Gene Truono in a landslide to win the Republican nomination.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

, incumbent

and 71st Governor of Delaware

Eliminated in primary

* Kerri Evelyn Harris,

activist and U.S. Air Force veteran

Withdrew

* Tykiem Booker, activist

Declined

* Lisa Blunt Rochester,

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

(running for re-election)

Endorsements

Debates

Delaware newspaper ''

The News Journal ''The News Journal'' is the main newspaper for Wilmington, Delaware, and the surrounding area. It is headquartered in unincorporated New Castle County, Delaware, near New Castle, and is owned by Gannett. History The ancestry of the News Journ ...

'' hosted a 90-minute debate on August 27, 2018 for the Democratic primary between

and Kerri Evelyn Harris at

Cab Calloway School of the Arts Cab Calloway School of the Arts (CCSA) is an arts-oriented magnet school in Wilmington, Delaware, operated by the Red Clay Consolidated School District. The school offers grades six through twelve and each student chooses a particular focus in the ...

. Republican candidate businessman Gene Truono answered questions from panelists before Carper and Harris debated. Sussex County Councilman Rob Arlett was also invited, but declined and claimed he had a scheduling conflict.
Full video of debate, Facebook

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

*Rob Arlett, Former Sussex County Councilman, and former Delaware State Chairman for the

Trump campaign There have been four presidential campaigns waged by Donald Trump for President of the United States. He has additionally mused about running on several other occasions. Donald Trump presidential campaign may refer to: * Donald Trump 2000 presid ...

Eliminated in primary

, businessman and perennial candidate *Gene Truono, businessman and former Chief Compliance Officer at PayPal

Withdrew

* Chuck Boyce, businessman (endorsed Rob Arlett)

Declined

Ken Simpler Kenneth A. Simpler is an American politician. He was Delaware State Treasurer from 2015 to 2019. He is the last Republican to win a statewide race in Delaware. Education Simpler attended high school at St. Andrew's School in Middletown, Delawar ...

, State Treasurer (running for re-election) * Kevin Wade, businessman and candidate for Senate in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

and

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

(endorsed Rob Arlett)

Endorsements

Debates

Councilman Rob Arlett and businessman Gene Truono had four debates in total. They were normally live streamed on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

and uploaded to

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. A fifth debate was planned, but Truono withdrew from the debate because he the organizers refused to give him control over what questions could not be asked. Instead organizers held a forum with all the other candidates for the U.S. Senate and other state offices. Five candidates attended that forum.
First Debate, YouTubeSecond Debate, Part 1, YouTubeSecond Debate, Part 2, YouTubeThird Debate, Part 1, YouTubeThird Debate, Part 2, YouTubeFourth Debate, YouTube

Polling

Results

Green primary

Candidates

Nominee

* Demitri Theodoropoulos, small business owner

Declined

* Andrew Groff, businessman and perennial candidate

Endorsements

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

*Nadine Frost,

New Castle County New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

chairwoman of

Libertarian Party of Delaware The Libertarian Party of Delaware (LPDE) is the Delaware affiliate of the national Libertarian Party. It was founded in 1975. The Libertarian Party of Delaware has taken the lead in many civil rights issues in the state, including medical freedo ...

and

Libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

nominee for Wilmington City Council in 2016

Independents

Not to be confused with the

Independent Party of Delaware The Independent Party of Delaware (IPoD) is a political party in the State of Delaware, United States. As of March 2021, it is the third largest political party in Delaware with 9,443 registered voters. The preamble outlines the party's goals: "T ...

, which did not run a candidate for the 2018 United States Senate election.

Candidates

Declared

* Barry Eveland (write-in) * Matthew Water Stout, write-in presidential candidate in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

(write-in) * Todd Farina, ticket company owner (write-in)

General election

Endorsements

Bold text indicates endorsement was given before the primary.

Debates

;with Kerri Evelyn Harris and Gene Truono On August 20, 2018, the Greater Hockessin Area Development Association (GHADA) hosted a 2-hour debate at the Hockessin Memorial Hall between Democratic candidate Kerri Evelyn Harris and Republican candidate Gene Truono.

and Rob Arlett were also invited to the debate, but did not attend. Carper was not present because of the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

's extended session due to session ceasing early the Thursday prior because of the death of former Governor and U.S. Senator of

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, Paul Laxalt. Arlett declined and claimed he had a scheduling conflict.
Full video of debate, Facebook
August 20, 2018 ;with Tom Carper and Rob Arlett The debate gained national attention after Republican candidate Rob Arlett brought up Democratic Senator

’s past controversy of domestic abuse.
Full video of debate, C-SPAN
October 17, 2018 ;with Tom Carper, Rob Arlett, Nadine Frost, and Demitri Theodoropoulos
Full video of debate, WHYY
October 30, 2018

Predictions

Polling

;with Tom Carper and Gene Truono ;with Kerri Evelyn Harris and Rob Arlett ;with Kerri Evelyn Harris and Gene Truono

Results

References

External links

Candidates
at

Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Candidates
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

Campaign finance
at FEC
Campaign finance
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP). ...

;Official campaign websites
Rob Arlett (R) for SenateTom Carper (D) for SenateDemitri Theodoropoulos (G) for Senate
{{2018 United States elections

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Background

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Withdrew

Declined

Endorsements

Debates

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Withdrew

Declined

Endorsements

Debates

Polling

Results

Green primary

Candidates

Nominee

Declined

Endorsements

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

Independents

Candidates

Declared

General election

Endorsements

Debates

Predictions

Polling

Results

See also

References

External links