Gregory F. Lavelle is an American politician. He was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

Delaware General Assembly The Delaware General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Delaware Senate with 21 senators and the Delaware House of Representatives with 41 representatives. It meets at Legisl ...

from 2001 to 2019, serving in both the

Delaware Senate The Delaware Senate is the upper house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is composed of 21 Senators, each of whom is elected to a four-year term, except when reapportionment occurs, at wh ...

and the

Delaware House of Representatives The Delaware State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is composed of 41 Representatives from an equal number of constituencies, each of whom is ...

. In the

2018 midterm elections The 2018 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. These midterm elections occurred during Republican Donald Trump's term. Democrats made a net gain of 41 seats in the United States House of Representatives, gaining a majo ...

, he lost his seat in the general election to

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Laura Sturgeon. Lavelle was elected to the Delaware House of Representatives in 2000 to replace Republican Catherine Cloutier, who had won a seat in the Delaware Senate. He served as the minority leader in the House from 2011 to 2013, during which time he was a leading opponent to

marriage equality Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

in Delaware. In 2012, Lavelle resigned his House seat to challenge

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-ele ...

Democrat Michael Katz in the Senate's

4th district Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

, which he won in a three-way general election. He served as the

minority whip The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and members of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as the chief spokespersons for their respective political parties holdin ...

when he was ousted from his seat in 2018 in a major upset that was one of several losses for prominent Republicans in Delaware. His loss came after a contentious election where Lavelle and the

Democratic Party of Delaware The Delaware Democratic Party (DelDems) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsy ...

traded accusations of misconduct and campaign violations, as well as the focus on Lavelle's anti-gay voting record. Lavelle earned his BS in business administration from the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially UD or Delaware) is a public land-grant research university located in Newark, Delaware. UD is the largest university in Delaware. It offers three associate's programs, 148 bachelor's programs, 121 ma ...

and his MS in government administration from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

Political positions

Lavelle was a large proponent against LGBT rights during his time in the

. He voted against adding

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

to Delaware anti-discrimination laws in 2009, and voted against adding

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent, and consistent with the ...

to anti-discrimination laws in 2013. In 2011, Lavelle voted against legalizing same-sex

civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

s and voted against legalizing

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

in 2013. Lavelle voted against repealing the death penalty in Delaware in 2013. The death penalty was ultimately abolished in Delaware in 2016. In 2011, Lavelle voted against legalizing

medical marijuana Medical cannabis, or medical marijuana (MMJ), is cannabis and cannabinoids that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has not been rigorously tested due to production and governmental restrictions ...

in Delaware and against decriminalizing recreational marijuana in 2015. However, Lavelle voted in favor of legalizing medical marijuana to treat

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

in 2015 and for reducing punishments for drug possession in 2011.

Electoral history

*In 2000, Lavelle won the three-way Republican primary for the House District 11 seat with 1,132 votes (50.7%). He went on to win the general election with 6,090 votes (64.3%) against Democratic nominee Steven Biener. *In 2002, Lavelle won the general election with 4,961 votes (65.7%) against Democratic nominee Michael Paul. *In 2004, Lavelle was unopposed in the general election, winning 7,702 votes. *In 2006, Lavelle won the general election with 4,635 votes (58.0%) against Democratic nominee Eric Levin. *In 2008, Lavelle won the general election with 6,731 votes (63.3%) against Democratic nominee Charles Old. *In 2010, Lavelle won the general election with 5,198 votes (61.0%) against Democratic nominee Joshua Schoenberg. *In 2012, resigned from the House and won the three-way general election for the Senate District 4 seat with 11,970 votes (50.8%) against incumbent Democrat Michael Katz and Libertarian nominee Marcia Davinci Groff. *In 2014, Lavelle won the general election with 8,983 votes (61.9%) against Democratic nominee Sarah Buttner. *In 2018, Lavelle lost his seat to Democratic challenger Laura Sturgeon, who received 11,251 votes (53.13%) to defeat Lavelle.

References

External links

Official page
at the

Former campaign site
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lavelle, Gregory F 1963 births Republican Party Delaware state senators Living people Republican Party members of the Delaware House of Representatives People from Wilmington, Delaware University of Delaware alumni University of Pennsylvania alumni 21st-century American politicians