Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long formally announces her run for governor.
Hall-Long was elected lieutenant governor in 2016 following 6 years in Delaware’s House of Representatives and 9 years in the State Senate.
As lieutenant governor, Hall-Long has focused heavily on health and addressing substance use disorder. She is credited with leading the charge to create the state’s Behavioural Health Consortium, which she currently chairs.
She has addressed substance use disorder from multiple angles, including legislation, and by taking to the streets to hand out harm reduction tools, such as fentanyl testing strips and the opioid overdose reversal medication narcan.
As governor, she hopes to expand access to reproductive care in the First State.
“Not only do we need to continue to protect the codification of Roe v Wade. But in this state we need to make sure all women have access to full reproductive health no matter their income.”
Her other areas of focus include environmental health and justice, education, gun violence, and food insecurity.
“We have to make sure that we continue to persist to create that smart environment,” said Hall-Long. “Where children can truly prosper. And they don't have to worry about gun violence. And they don't have to worry about food on their table. And they know that they have clean air, and clean water at home to drink.”
If elected, she would be the state’s second female governor. Ruth Ann Minner, who served as governor from January 2001 to January 2009, was the first.
Hall-Long would also join the short list of medical professionals who served in the role.
“If I’m elected, and when I’m elected, I will be the first nurse governor ever in these United States of America,” she said.
Hall-Long faces New Castle County Executive Matt Meyerin the 2024 Democratic primaries.
The last filing by the two campaigns in January showed Meyer with fundrasing edge to start. Hall-Long had just over $423,000 in available campaign funds according to her campaign committee's last filing in January. Meyer reported having a little over $1 million in that same filing window.
