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2. Delaware 1794 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
3. Delaware 1796 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
4. Delaware 1797 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
5. Delaware 1798 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
6. Delaware 1798 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
7. Delaware 1799 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
8. Delaware 1799 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
9. Delaware 1800 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
10. Delaware 1800 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
11. Delaware 1800 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
12. Delaware 1801 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
13. Delaware 1801 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
14. Delaware 1801 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
15. Delaware 1802 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
16. Delaware 1803 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
17. Delaware 1803 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
18. Delaware 1803 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
19. Delaware 1804 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
20. Delaware 1804 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
21. Delaware 1804 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
22. Delaware 1805 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
23. Delaware 1805 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
24. Delaware 1807 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
25. Delaware 1808 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
26. Delaware 1809 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
27. Delaware 1809 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
28. Delaware 1810 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
29. Delaware 1810 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
30. Delaware 1810 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
31. Delaware 1811 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
32. Delaware 1811 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
33. Delaware 1811 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
34. Delaware 1812 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
35. Delaware 1812 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
36. Delaware 1814 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
37. Delaware 1814 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
38. Delaware 1815 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
39. Delaware 1815 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
40. Delaware 1816 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
41. Delaware 1816 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
42. Delaware 1816 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
43. Delaware 1817 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
44. Delaware 1818 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
45. Delaware 1818 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
46. Delaware 1820 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
47. Delaware 1820 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
48. Delaware 1820 Levy Court Commissioner, Sussex County
49. Delaware 1821 Levy Court Commissioner, Kent County
50. Delaware 1821 Levy Court Commissioner, New Castle County
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On December 7, 1787 the Delaware State Legislature, by a unanimous vote of 30 to 0, became the first state to ratify the newly proposed national Constitution.
When a new State Constitution was adopted in 1792, the office of State Executive, which had previously been called President and chosen by the Legislature, was changed to Governor, and became an elected position. The term of office was kept at three years.
Delaware with only three counties (New Castle, Kent and Sussex) had the fewest in the nation. They also had the smallest State Legislature, comprised of nine State Senators and twenty-one Representatives.
Each county had three Senators, serving for three years. Their terms were staggered, so that one Senator was elected every year from each county. The House of Representatives had twenty one members, seven from each county, and who were elected annually at large.
Congressional, State and County Elections were held simultaneously in early October. Delaware elected one Congressman from 1788 – 1810, two for 1812 – 1820, and then one again from 1822 onward. State offices elected by popular vote were Governor, State Senator and Representatives. County officials elected by popular vote were Levy Court Commissioners, Coroners and Sheriff.
The voting alignment of the three counties, with New Castle voting Republican and Sussex and Kent being Federalist, meant that the State Legislature was almost always controlled by Federalists. As a result, from 1792 to 1820 Delaware chose Federalist Presidential Electors, even in 1820 when all four electors gave their Vice Presidential votes to Daniel Rodney, a Federalist and former Governor.
The Legislature also selected United States Senators, and with the exception of Caesar A. Rodney, who was elected in 1822, all those chosen during this time period were Federalists.
Party competition began with the state elections of 1792 and continued virtually unabated until 1826, when the last Federalist Governor was elected. Despite the dominance of Federalists in the Legislature, the parties were fairly balanced in popular voting strength, with Republicans electing their candidate for Governor in 1801, 1810, 1820 and 1822 and Congressmen in 1792, 1794, 1802 and capturing one of their two seats in 1816, 1818 and 1820.
Delaware counties were broken down into Hundreds, which seem to be the equivalent of townships. By 1811 state election returns started to be reported by Hundreds, a procedure which began showing the tight cohesion in voting amongst Federalist and Republican tickets.
The Hundreds also elected local officials such as Assessors, Inspectors and Road Commissioners. These elections were held in September, before the state voted in October, and on occasion, if they were favorable to either party, these returns were reported in the newspapers.
Delaware, the first state in the Union was the last to elect a Federalist Governor.
Bibliography
Levy Court Commissioner
Levy Court Commissioner: The levy court in Delaware originated during the Dutch period (1655 - 1664) as a body for tax control. Through the history of the First State, the Levy Court took many forms with varying degrees of power and authority. The Levy Court serves the same function as a county council and consists of seven elected commissioners. One commissioner is elected from each of the six Levy Court districts and one commissioner is elected at large. These commissioners represent the governing body of the county and hold weekly business and committee meetings which are open to the public.
definition from The Natural Resources Conservation Service: http://www.de.nrcs.usda.gov/partnerships/rcd/what_is_levy_court.html
1794 - 1824: Delaware
Office Scope: County
Role Scope: County