2008 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware

The 2008 United States House election in Delaware was held on November 4, 2008, to determine who will represent the state of Delaware in the United States House of Representatives for the 111th Congress, coinciding with the presidential election. The primary election was held on September 9, 2008.[1]

2008 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware

← 2006 November 4, 2008 2010 →
 
Nominee Mike Castle Karen Hartley-Nagle
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 235,437 146,434
Percentage 61.1% 38.0%

Castle:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Hartley-Nagle:      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. Representative before election

Mike Castle
Republican

Elected U.S. Representative

Mike Castle
Republican

Delaware has a single at-large representative in the House of Representatives. Republican incumbent Mike Castle was reelected for an eighth term. As of 2024, this is the last time where a Republican won a congressional race in Delaware, and the last statewide race where the Republican won New Castle County. It was an impressive display of ticket-splitting by Delaware voters, as Castle, a Republican, obtained over 60% of the vote, while the Democratic candidates in the concurrent presidential, Senate, and gubernatorial elections all received over 60% of the vote as well.

Background

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Map of Delaware's at-large congressional district

The state of Delaware is completely contained in a single at-large district. The district had a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+7 in 2008.[2] Since 1993, the district had been represented by Republican Mike Castle.

Primary election

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Primary elections in Delaware are closed primaries; that is, only voters who have declared a party affiliation may vote in that party's primary.[3] Three Democrats were on the primary ballot: children's rights advocate and 2006 independent candidate Karen Hartley-Nagle, veterinarian and Vietnam War veteran Jerry Northington, and Michael Miller.[4][5] Hartley-Nagle was nominated with 55.4 percent of the vote, with turnout at 28 percent.[6] Castle did not face any Republican primary challengers.

Democratic primary for the 2008 Delaware House of Representatives election[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Karen Hartley-Nagle 35,995 55.4
Democratic Jerry Northington 22,393 34.5
Democratic Michael Miller 6,609 10.1
Total votes 64,997 100

General election

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In the general election, Republican incumbent Mike Castle was challenged by Democratic nominee Karen Hartley-Nagle and Libertarian Party candidate Mark Anthony Parks. CQ Politics forecasted the race in Delaware's at-large congressional district as 'Safe Republican'. Castle enjoyed a lead throughout the campaign, and ultimately won the election with slightly over 61 percent of the votes cast. Statewide turnout for the election was at 68 percent.[7]

2008 Delaware's at-large congressional district election[7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Delaware Republican Party Mike Castle (incumbent) 235,437 61.08
Democratic Karen Hartley-Nagle 146,434 37.99
Libertarian Mark Parks 3,586 0.93
Total votes 385,457 100.00
Delaware Republican Party hold

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Calendar of Election Events Archived 2008-08-06 at the Wayback Machine State of Delaware
  2. ^ "Cook Political Report, PVI for the 110th Congress" (PDF). Cook Political Report. June 30, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 26, 2008. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
  3. ^ "15 Del.C. § 3110. Qualifications of voters". Delaware Code. State of Delaware. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  4. ^ "Getting to Know Karen Hartley-Nagle". Karen Hartley-Nagle for Congress. Archived from the original on November 12, 2008. Retrieved February 8, 2009.
  5. ^ "About Jerry Northington". Northington for Congress. Archived from the original on July 25, 2008. Retrieved February 8, 2009.
  6. ^ a b "State of Delaware Primary Election (Official Results)". Commissioner of Elections for the State of Delaware. October 2, 2008. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  7. ^ a b "State of Delaware General Election (Official Results)". Commissioner of Elections for the State of Delaware. December 15, 2008. Archived from the original on May 28, 2019. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
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