Legislative Update

April 5, 2012

As expected, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney won the Maryland, Washington, DC and Wisconsin Republican Primaries.  Of the 2,286 delegates available, Romney currently has 652, Santorum has 269, Gingrich holds 140 and Paul has 67.  The next six primaries, with the exception of the nonbinding Missouri caucuses (52 delegates) on April 21, are like to boost Romney’s count substantially.  On April 24.  New York has 95 delegates at stake in a proportional primary.  Pennsylvania holds 72 in a direct election contest wherein voters cast ballots directly for the candidates rather than for the electors to the convention. Connecticut has 28 delegates at stake in a hybrid primary where some delegates are elected by district, while some are elected statewide, some proportionately and some “winner-take-all”.  Should a candidate in Connecticut garner more than 50% of the votes, all of the delegates will accrue to them.  Rhode Island has 18 delegates available in a proportional contest and Delaware has 17 delegates in a winner-take-all primary.    Observers note that all of these states are likely to lean heavily toward Romney, though there is a possibility that Santorum will do better in the vote count than expected in Pennsylvania.

Among the 14 states that remain after the April 24 contests, Texas (May 29) and California (June 1) have the most delegates to offer with 155 and 172 respectively.  Texas is a proportional primary where, if he is still in the race, Santorum may do well among evangelical voters.  California a winner-take-all contest in a state with a significant Mormon population. 

As the contest progresses, a brokered convention seems less likely.  Romney is seen as the most likely nominee. 

Senate Minority Whip Liane Sorenson announces her intention to retire

Yesterday, April 3, Senator Liane Sorenson announced her intention not to run for reelection.  Senator Sorenson, who first came to the Delaware General Assembly in 1992 as a House member elected to fill a seat vacated by Phil Corrozi.  She was elected to the Delaware State Senate in 1994 following the retirement of the late Andrew Knox.   Senator Sorenson has served with distinction in the Senate and has brought credit to the people of her district and the body in which she served.  We at the New Castle County Chamber of Commerce have counted her among our friends and supporters over the years and we wish her and her family well.