Handbook·Elections

Running for office in Delaware

State page·Verified 2026-07-10

This page covers what's specific to Delaware on top of the general guide to filing for local office.

Filing in Delaware

Delaware candidate filing runs through the Department of Elections. Major-party candidates for the General Assembly, county, or city council pay a filing fee set by their county or city party committee, capped by statute at 1 percent of the total salary for the term of the office, and committees must fix that fee by July 1 of the election year. Unaffiliated candidates, or party candidates who'd rather skip the fee, can instead file a nominating petition signed by registered voters equal to 1 percent of registration in the relevant district, circulated between January 1 and July 15 of the election year. General Assembly candidates must also request a State Bureau of Identification background check by the filing deadline, and all candidates file a financial disclosure with the Public Integrity Commission within 14 days of filing.

Deadlines and numbers

  • 2026 candidate filing deadline: noon, Tuesday, July 14, 2026
  • Petition circulation window: January 1 to July 15, 2026, certified petitions due by September 1
  • 2026 primary election: September 15, 2026. General election: November 3, 2026
  • Filing fee cap: 1 percent of the full term's salary, exact amount set by county/city committees by July 1, 2026

The dossier could not confirm exact 2026 dollar filing fee amounts for Delaware House and Senate seats, since fees are set per county or city party committee rather than published as one statewide schedule, and could not confirm exact petition signature counts (raw numbers) for individual 2026 legislative districts or specific council seats. Route both to /engage or your county Department of Elections office.

Where to go