Incumbent State Representative Dennis E. Williams (D-Talleyville) will face a primary challenge if he seeks to keep his seat later this year.
27-year old Sean Matthews officially filed to run on the Democratic ticket for the 10th District Tuesday. The 10th covers parts of North Wilmington.
Matthews works as a special education teacher in the Brandywine School District. He says his experience in education would be invaluable in the General Assembly.
"As a teacher I think I can make schools work best for kids. Obviously budget times are tight and we need an expert on schools, and I’d be the only working teacher in the General Assembly," said Matthews. "To me it’s an economic development issue. We need to ensure our graduates leave our schools with the skills of tomorrow, not of yesterday."
Matthews says he would also focus constituent services if elected. He says Williams has not delivered in that category.
"All politics is local. I spent a lot of time in my own neighborhood -- we have about 500 homes -- talking about street signs, roads, different issues," said Matthews. "A lot of neighbors have not liked the responses they’ve gotten from their current representative."
Matthews also works as president of his neighborhood’s civic association. He adds that he is encouraged by young people stepping up to challenge what he sees as the existing political culture in Delaware.
The 10th district was a contested race in both in the primary and general elections in 2012. Dennis E. Williams defeated Matthews by 75 votes in the 2012 Democratic primary, then won the general election by only 4 percentage points over Republican Bob Rhodunda. Rhodunda has also announced he intends to run again in 2014.
