3 Delaware lawmakers don't plan on seeking reelection in 2022. Here's why that matters

Since the legislative session ended this summer, three lawmakers have announced that they won't be seeking reelection this fall.

In such a small Statehouse, it only takes a handful of new faces to change the course of policy and have lasting political repercussions. In the 2020 election, there were two open seats in the 62-person General Assembly from members retiring.

The latest lawmaker to reveal retirement plans is Rep. David Bentz, a 35-year-old Democrat from Christiana, who announced in August that he won't seek reelection in the November 2022 midterm election.

Bentz has held the seat since 2015 and has not had a challenger in his three previous bids for reelection.

"This was not an easy decision, but it is the right one for myself and my family, and by making this announcement now, it gives our district time to find and eventually elect someone who will be a positive force for the community," Bentz said in a statement.

He said he never planned on being in politics forever, he said.

Rep. Gerald Brady, a Democrat from Wilmington, said in July that he would not be seeking reelection after fellow politicians and residents called for his resignation following his use of an anti-Asian slur and a joke making light of human trafficking in an email sent from his official government account.

The Delaware House Ethics Committee unanimously voted to drop an ethics complaint lodged against Brady following a closed-door meeting.

Shortly before that, Sen. Ernie López, a Republican from Lewes, announced that he also won't seek reelection. His district is the only one in red Sussex County where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans. In an interview with Delaware Online/The News Journal, he said the time was right to "go out on my own terms."

It's unclear if the retirements indicate a pattern, especially since patterns are hard to come by in a Statehouse as small as Delaware's, according to Paul Brewer, research director at the University of Delaware's Center for Political Communication.

The state is gearing up to redraw its legislative districts this fall ahead of next year's midterm election. Like with any election, incumbents are wary of any potential challengers — especially if voter attitudes are shifting in their districts or if their electorate is expected to change due to redistricting.

Some incumbents might choose to retire instead of fighting through a brutal reelection campaign, Brewer said.

"In the U.S. House, more Republicans retired than Democrats before 2018," Brewer said. "It was kind of a sign that Republicans and Democrats expected Republicans to have a bad year. Some people just get out before the bad news comes in."

The retirements have also opened up an opportunity for hopeful candidates who may not fit the same mold as the incumbent. Open seats are easier to flip because incumbents typically enjoy a political leg-up thanks to name recognition and resources, according to Brewer.

The results of the 2022 midterms, which are more than a year out, are anyone's guess. If the election is any sort of repeat of 2020, progressive Democrats could gain an even greater foothold on the Legislature by ousting more moderates in the northern half of the state like they did last fall.

But midterms can also be an opportunity for Republicans to gain a few seats, even at the local level, if the election becomes a referendum on President Joe Biden. That could prove especially true if Sussex County gains one or two legislative districts as a result of redistricting, thanks to population increase over the past 10 years.

Kyra Hoffner, an advocate with the Delaware League of Women Voters who in 2020 ran an unsuccessful Democratic primary bid against moderate Sen. Bruce Ennis in Smyrna, blames at least some of the retirements on a changing political atmosphere where progressive policies have started to gain traction.

"The state is changing," Hoffner said. "We're getting a lot of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania people. And they're starting to outnumber the locals. So people want something different. They don't want the same-old-same-old and, you know, some of these changes are just taking way too long to happen."

LÓPEZ RETIRING:Lewes Republican Sen. Ernie López announces he will retire in 2022

BRADY TO RETIRE AFTER ANTI-ASIAN SLUR:Wilmington lawmaker won't run for reelection after anti-Asian slur in email draws backlash

Sarah Gamard covers government and politics for Delaware Online/The News Journal. Reach her at (302) 324-2281 or sgamard@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGamard.