By Glenn Rolfe

LINCOLN — Does a local senator’s use of state of Delaware letterhead in endorsing a school board candidate constitute a violation of Delaware Code?

Sen. Dave Wilson, R-Lincoln, doesn’t believe so.

But there’s a question surrounding Sen. Wilson’s recent endorsement of Matt Bucher, a candidate for Milford School District’s board of education, a vote that takes place May 10. Official state letterhead was used for the senator’s endorsement letter, which was compiled by a personal staffer and distributed via his personal email.

An April 22 posting on the political blog site, delawareliberal.net, contends, “Senator Dave Wilson was in clear violation of Delaware law, Title 29, section 5954, by using his senate staff and letterhead to endorse Matt Bucher for the at-large seat on the Milford School Board.”

But Sen. Wilson stated, “The only thing that the state can say was theirs was the state piece of paper — a piece of paper that has David L. Wilson written at the top and the state seal on it. If that’s what they are concerned about, that was definitely paid for by state of Delaware taxpayers. I’ll take full responsibility.”

The cited section of the Delaware Code states:

• “No person shall use or promise to use, directly or indirectly, any official authority or influence, whether possessed or anticipated, to secure or attempt to secure for any person an appointment or advantage in appointment to a position in the classified service, or an increase in pay or other advantage in employment in any such position, for the purpose of influencing the vote or political action of any person, or for any consideration.”
• “No employee in the classified service shall engage in any political activity or solicit any political contribution, assessment or subscription during the employee’s hours of employment or while engaged in the business of the State.”
• “No person shall induce, directly or indirectly, any employee in the classified service to make a contribution, assessment or subscription to a political party under the representation, actual or implied, that such assessment, subscription or contribution will have any effect on the employee’s employment with the State.”

Kenneth “Bo” McDowell, director of the Sussex County Department of Elections, said the issue is out of its jurisdiction because Sen. Wilson has already been elected.

“The Department of Elections has no oversight over a sitting officeholder’s use of official letterhead to endorse a candidate,” said Cathleen Hartsky-Carter, Delaware Department of Elections’ Community Relations Officer/FOIA Coordinator.

Sen. Brian Pettyjohn, R-Georgetown, is one of six legislators serving on the Senate Ethics Committee. It’s comprised of four Democrats and two Republicans.

Sen. Pettyjohn said he had spoken to Sen. Wilson and had seen the democratliberal.net posting but doesn’t believe the use of state letterhead in this case would necessitate an Ethics Committee investigation.

“It’s a discussion that, ‘You should not have used state letterhead,’” he said. “For the cost of a single sheet of paper, … an honest mistake, I’m not sure that it would rise to the level of an ethics investigation on Sen. Wilson.

“What (the blog writers) are citing as Delaware Code is for using the employees,” he added. “It wasn’t a Senate employee that was used to do this. I think it’s much ado about nothing.”

Sen. Wilson said there are similar matters happening in Dover.

“If they are interested in wanting to know about this piece of paper that I generated with my statement on it, I am saying there is a lot of other (similar) issues in Dover (with) people who are working up there,” he said.

The senator, who has represented the 18th District since January 2019 after serving in the House of Representatives from 2008-18, reaffirmed that his staffer “does not work for the state. She works for me personally.”

“The issue I have with it is, we’re so petty over a piece of paper that they are telling me that taxpayers pay for. Well, guess what? The toilet paper that is in the bathrooms (at Legislative Hall) is paid for by state people, and we use that. Nobody has ever requested for that back,” he said.

“And if anyone in the 18th District is unhappy with what I did, I suggest they don’t vote for me in the future.”