County executive wins Democratic nod to succeed Delaware Gov. Carney

New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer has won the Democratic nomination for governor of Delaware, according to Decision Desk HQ. 

Meyer defeated Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long and former state Secretary of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Collin O’Mara to win the primary. He is seeking to succeed outgoing Gov. John Carney (D), who is term limited as he completes his second term in office. 

Meyer was first elected to serve as executive of New Castle County, the northernmost county in the state, in 2016 and was reelected to a second four-year term in 2020. New Castle is also the most populous county in Delaware by a large margin. 

Before serving as county executive, Meyer served as a diplomat in Iraq and an economic adviser to former Delaware Gov. Jack Markell (D). 

He was able to win the nomination despite Hall-Long receiving major endorsements from Carney, the state Democratic Party and the pro-abortion rights group EMILY’s List. 

Polling had shown Meyer and Hall-Long in a close battle with O’Mara lagging in third. One poll from last month showed Meyer leading by 7 points, 30 percent to Hall-Long’s 23 percent, with 8 percent for O’Mara and 40 percent undecided. 

Other polls including from groups supporting or opposing a specific candidate found a close race with a third or more of voters undecided. 

Meyer will be the heavy favorite to win the general election in November in the solidly blue state.