The Delaware General Assembly is the

legislature A legislature is an deliberative assembly, assembly with the authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country or city. They are often contrasted with the Executive (government), executive and Judiciary, ...

of the U.S. state of

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacen ...

. It is a

bicameral Bicameralism is a type of legislature, one divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single gro ...

legislature composed of the Delaware Senate with 21 senators and the Delaware House of Representatives with 41 representatives. It meets at Legislative Hall in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

, convening on the second Tuesday of January of odd-numbered years, with a second session of the same Assembly convening likewise in even-numbered years. Normally the sessions are required to adjourn by the last day of June of the same calendar year. However the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

can call a special session of the legislature at any time. Members are elected from

single-member district A single-member district is an electoral district represented by a single officeholder. It contrasts with a multi-member district, which is represented by multiple officeholders. Single-member districts are also sometimes called single-winner v ...

s, all apportioned to roughly equal populations after each decennial

Census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

. Elections are held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November and about one-half of the Senate is elected every two years for a four-year term, and the entire House of Representatives is elected every two years for a two-year term. Vacancies are filled through special elections. There are no

term limits A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potential ...

for either chamber. With 62 seats, the Delaware General Assembly is the second-smallest bicameral state legislature in the United States – ahead of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S ...

(60 seats) and behind

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

(63).

History

The Delaware General Assembly was one of the thirteen legislatures that participated in the American War of Independence. Created by the

Delaware Constitution of 1776 The Delaware Constitution of 1776 was the first governing document for Delaware state government and was in effect from its adoption in September 1776 until its replacement by the 1792 constitution. Background On June 15, 1776, at the urging of P ...

, its membership and responsibilities have been modified by the Delaware Constitution of 1792, the Delaware Constitution of 1831, the Delaware Constitution of 1897, and

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point ...

decision in '' Reynolds v. Sims'' in 1965. Significant actions of the General Assembly include the calling of the

constitutional convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

which became the first to ratify the United States Constitution in 1787 (which led to Delaware's state nickname, "the First State"), and its rejection of secession from the Union on January 3, 1861, even though Delaware was a slave state. Also significant was its repeated refusal to legislate the end of slavery or voting rights for women, requiring federal law to enforce those changes. Until 1898 the General Assembly was apportioned by county, with a total of 30 members elected county-wide "

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...

" with equal numbers from each of the three counties. After 1898 the total membership was increased to 52 and they were elected from districts, mostly corresponding to the geographical boundaries of hundreds within the counties. However, there was little recognition of disparities in population, except for the addition of two extra senators and five extra representatives elected from much more populous New Castle County. After the Supreme Court decision in ''Reynolds v. Sims'' in 1965, the General Assembly was forced to redistrict so that all members of both houses were elected from districts of equal population. By 1972, the total membership had increased to its present 62. In 1924, Florence Wood Hanby became the first woman elected to the Delaware General Assembly, winning a seat in the Delaware House of Representatives. It is the only legislature with the power to unilaterally amend its constitution without requiring a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of ...

or any other approval.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Bicameral legislatures

History

See also

References

External links