Paradee and King Face Off for Dover’s Seat in Delaware Senate
Current State Representative Trey Paradee and Mr. Justin King are competing to represent the City of Dover in the Delaware Senate.
The City of Dover is primarily represented in the Delaware Senate by the Senator representing Delaware Senate District 17. The retirement of Delaware Senator Brian Bushweller this year means that this is an open seat being contested by current State Representative Trey Paradee and Mr. Justin King.
Bike Delaware sent a short (just three questions) survey to Representative Paradee and Mr. King. Each question simply asked for the candidates’ views on the three major pieces of walking/cycling legislation that have been passed by the Delaware General Assembly in the last 8 years:
- I voted for, or agree with, Walkable Bikeable Delaware (2011), which called for strategic investments by the Delaware Department of Transportation in infrastructure for walking and cycling.
- I voted for, or agree with, the Healthy and Transit-Friendly Development Act (2016), which established a mechanism in Delaware state law for State and local governments to coordinate transportation investments and land use regulation in order to encourage the development of walkable, bikeable and transit-friendly communities.
- I voted for, or agree with, the Bicycle Friendly Delaware Act (2017), which made changes to Delaware’s Rules of the Road relating to bicycles (and farm equipment and animal-drawn vehicles).
Representative Paradee answered “Strongly Agree” to each of these statements. Mr. King did not respond to the survey.
From Claymont in the North to Dagsboro in the South, there are dozens of competitive Delaware Senate and House races that will be decided by our votes on November 6. These races are important because Delaware’s State Senators and State Representatives are the people who – among other things – approve (or don’t!) the funding to build major trails like the Wilmington-New Castle Greenway and the Lewes-Georgetown Trail; who set the laws that influence the future development of our communities (will development make our communities more, or less, walkable and bikeable?); who make the policies that govern the operations of influential state agencies like the Delaware Department of Transportation; and who decide what Delaware’s Rules of the Road should be. Check out Bike Delaware’s 2018 Voter’s Guide for information on all these races.
Get informed. And then vote smart on November 6.
