Delaware Sees Its Closest US House Race Since 1992

Midterm review season begins with The First State.

Did Democrats really just do that? After being told to batten down the hatches and prepare for a red wave, we’re emerging from our Election Day bunkers to see that Republicans didn’t make the major gains most expected. Like I playfully guessed back in September, the red wave crashed into a frothy mess.

While electoral control of Congress is nearly decided (Republicans are only a couple seats away from retaking the House at time of writing), there are still millions of votes left to be counted. Instead of diving into national takeaways, I’m jumping straight into my classic state-by-state review of election results, starting with states that have reported votes from all precincts. Once all votes are counted across the country, I’ll double back in December to investigate larger national trends that may help us understand what’s in store for 2024.

There’s no better way to start my 50-state tour than to begin with The First State: Delaware.

Click here for a link to the state’s official election results reporting page.

Delaware voters re-elected Democratic Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, the first African American to represent the state in the US House. Rochester faced off against a familiar opponent: Republican Lee Murphy, as he campaigned for her seat in 2020 as well. Murphy’s comments on abortion in a state that hasn’t elected a Republican statewide since 2008 made his chances of winning incredibly slim:

“I support the Supreme Court’s decision… Handing it back to the states where it rightfully belongs, where people can get in touch with their legislators and do what’s best for the interests of that particular state.”

—Republican House candidate Lee Murphy on the recent SCOTUS decision

Even with abortion as a top-of-mind issue for many voters, this election marks Rochester’s closest race to date as her winning margin narrowed to 12 points. (For comparison, in the 2018 midterms Rochester won with a landslide 28-point victory.) Turnout for this election was down compared to the 2018 midterms with about 9% less total votes cast. For those that did vote, the state of democracy across the country was also a major issue:

“We can either take the bad route and become more authoritarian or try to maintain the democracy we have… I voted Democratic because I think the Democrats are more concerned with preserving the democracy than Republicans." —Democratic voter Michael Makowski

“The party stands for nothing that I used to think it stood for… It’s a huge embarrassment. We are supposed to be the example? It’s just going backwards in time.” —Former Republican, now Independent voter Shelly Towler

More on Delaware From Battleground

• Learn about the Delmarva Peninsula’s history with statehood.

• See how Delaware voted in the 2020 presidential election.