Current delegation

Below is a chronological listing of the United States senators from Delaware. U.S. senators were originally elected by the Delaware General Assembly for designated six-year terms beginning March 4. Frequently portions of the term would remain only upon a U.S. senator's death or resignation. From 1914 and the enforcement of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, adopted in 1913, officeholders were popularly elected on the first Tuesday after November 1; starting 1935, the beginning of their term is January 3. Delaware's current U.S. senators are Democrats Tom Carper (serving since 2001) and Chris Coons (serving since 2010).

List of senators edit

Class 1

Class 1 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that were elected for only one Congress in the first elections of 1788, and the seat was contested again for the 2nd, 5th, and every three Congresses (six years) thereafter. The seat in recent years has been contested in 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2018. The next election will be in 2024.

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Class 2

Class 2 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that were elected for the first two United States Congresses in the first elections of 1788, and the seat was next contested again for the 3rd, 6th, and every three Congresses (six years) thereafter. The seat in recent years has been contested in 2002, 2008, and 2014, with a special election in 2010. The next election will be in 2020.

# Senator Party Dates in office Electoral history T T Electoral history Dates in office Party Senator #
1  
George Read
Pro-
Admin.
March 4, 1789 –
September 18, 1793
Elected in 1788. 1 1st 1 Elected in 1788. March 4, 1789 –
March 3, 1793
Anti-
Admin.
 
Richard Bassett
1
Re-elected October 23, 1790.

Resigned to become Chief Justice of Delaware.
2 2nd Pro-
Admin.
3rd 2 Elected in 1793.

Resigned.
March 4, 1793 –
January 19, 1798
Pro-Admin.  
John M. Vining
2
Vacant September 18, 1793 –
February 7, 1795
 
2  
Henry Latimer
Pro-
Admin.
February 7, 1795 –
February 28, 1801
Elected in 1795 to finish Read's term.
Federalist 4th
Re-elected January 6, 1797.

Resigned.
3 5th
Elected in 1798 to finish Vining's term.

Died.
January 19, 1798 –
August 11, 1798
Federalist  
Joshua Clayton
3
  August 11, 1798 –
January 17, 1799
Vacant
Elected in 1799 to finish Clayton's term. January 17, 1799 –
November 6, 1804
Federalist  
William H. Wells
4
6th 3 Re-elected in 1799.

Resigned.
3  
Samuel White
Federalist February 28, 1801 –
November 4, 1809
Appointed to finish Latimer's term.
7th
Re-elected January 11, 1803.[1] 4 8th
  November 6, 1804 –
November 13, 1804
Vacant
Elected in 1804 to finish Wells's term. November 13, 1804 –
March 3, 1813
Federalist  
James A. Bayard
5
9th 4 Re-elected in 1805.
10th
Re-elected January 11, 1809.[2]

Died.

5 11th
Vacant November 4, 1809 –
January 12, 1810
 
4 Outerbridge Horsey Federalist January 12, 1810 –
March 3, 1821
Elected in 1810 to finish White's term.
12th 5 Re-elected in 1811.

Resigned.
13th   March 3, 1813 –
May 21, 1813
Vacant
Elected in 1813 to finish Bayard's term.

Retired.
May 21, 1813 –
March 3, 1817
Federalist  
William H. Wells
6
Re-elected January 13, 1815.[3]

Retired.
6 14th
15th 6 Elected in 1817.

Legislature failed to elect.
March 4, 1817 –
March 3, 1823
Federalist  
Nicholas Van Dyke
7
16th
Vacant March 4, 1821 –
January 23, 1822
  7 17th
5  
Caesar A. Rodney
Democratic-
Republican
January 24, 1822 –
January 29, 1823
Elected late to finish vacant term.

Resigned to become U.S. Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Provinces of the River Plate.
Vacant January 29, 1823 –
January 8, 1824
 
18th 7   March 4, 1823 –
January 8, 1824
Vacant
Re-elected late.

Died.
January 8, 1824 –
May 21, 1826
Adams-Clay Federalist  
Nicholas Van Dyke
6  
Thomas Clayton
Adams-Clay Federalist January 8, 1824 –
March 3, 1827
Elected in 1824 to finish Rodney's term.
Anti-Jacksonian 19th Anti-
Jacksonian
  May 21, 1826 –
November 8, 1826
Vacant
Appointed to continue Van Dyke's term.

Retired.
November 8, 1826 –
January 12, 1827
Anti-
Jacksonian
 
Daniel Rodney
8
Elected in 1827 to finish Van Dyke's term.

Retired.
January 12, 1827 –
March 3, 1829
Jacksonian  
Henry M. Ridgely
9
7  
Louis McLane
Jacksonian March 4, 1827 –
April 16, 1829
Elected in 1827.

Resigned to become U.S. Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to England.
8 20th
21st 80 Elected in 1829. March 4, 1829 –
January 15, 2009
Democratic  
Joe Biden
80
Vacant April 16, 1829 –
January 7, 1830
 
8  
Arnold S. Naudain
Anti-Jacksonian January 7, 1830 –
June 16, 1836
Elected in 1830 to finish McLane's term.
22nd
Re-elected in 1832.

Resigned.
9 23rd
24th 9 Re-elected in 1835.
9  
Richard H. Bayard
Anti-Jacksonian June 17, 1836 –
September 19, 1839
Elected in 1836 to finish Naudain's term.
Elected in 1837 to finish his cousin's term. January 9, 1837 –
March 3, 1847
Anti-Jacksonian  
Thomas Clayton
11
Whig 25th Whig
  1. ^ "Delaware 1803 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved January 30, 2018., citing Journal of the Delaware State Senate, 1803. 13–14.
  2. ^ "Delaware 1809 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 18, 2018., citing United States' Gazette (Philadelphia, PA). January 14, 1809.
  3. ^ "Delaware 1815 U.S. Senate". Tufts Digital Collations and Archives. A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825. Tufts University. Retrieved February 25, 2018., citing Journal of the Delaware House of Representatives, 1815. 37.