(Carper, right, during a tour at Delaware Technical Community College)
Delaware U.S. Sen. Tom Carper announced Monday morning he will not run for another term in 2024
Carper served as a state treasurer, governor, and Congressman before being elected to the Senate.
His accomplishments included leading an effort that kept the GM Boxwood plant open after initial plans to close the site. The plant closed in 2009, and as treasurer, helped to engineer an assistance package for Chrysler as the automaker faced a bankruptcy filing that might have led to its demise.
As a Congressman, Senator, and Governor, he championed recreational trails in the state and economic development.
Expected to be the leading candidate to succeed Carper is Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester, Delaware’s first Black member of Congress. If Blunt Rochester opts for a Senate run, it could lead to a scramble for the state’s lone congressional seat.
Carper followed the Delaware formula of visiting all three counties, often on Fridays when the Senate was not in session.
He became known for piling up the miles up and down Delaware in an aging American-built minivan.
He was known as a more moderate “Blue Dog” Democrat, but during the Administration of President Trump appeared to move further to the left, perhaps in response to fellow Democrats taking more of a leftward turn.
Carper’s seat is one of the safer ones for Democrats who will be in a tough battle for Senate control in 2024. Republicans have been unable to field viable candidates of late, with Dems holding an edge in voter registration.
