Delaware Democrats celebrate annual jamboree

Just a few days after a busy Primary Day, Delaware’s Democrats gathered for the annual Sussex County Democratic Jamboree to celebrate and prepare for the November election.

With so many more Democratic voters in Delaware than Republicans, many elections in the state are decided on Primary Day. That can make for some bad blood between party members on opposite sides during the primary campaign. But now with the Democrat vs. Democrat races over, Delawares Dems can focus their attention on supporting their fellow party members and take aim at their Republican opponents.

That’s part of the function of the annual Sussex County Democratic Jamboree. Held just days after the primary votes were counted, the jamboree serves as a launching point for those Democrats who survived tough primary battles. People like U.S. House candidate Lisa Blunt Rochester and Lt. Governor Candidate Bethany Hall-Long who both outlasted five other Democrats to win their primary.

It’s also a chance for candidates who didn’t have a primary opponent to ramp up their campaign. People like gubernatorial candidate John Carney who will now knows he’ll face Republican Colin Bonini in November after Bonini easily defeated Lacey Lafferty in one of the few Republican primaries.

Last year, the jamboree drew headlines because of a surprise visit by Vice President Joe Biden. Biden’s visit fueled speculation that he might actually be leaning towards throwing his hat into the presidential race. Just a few weeks later, however, Biden announced that he would not join the Democratic presidential primary race. It was rumored that Biden was going to make another appearance at this year’s jamboree- one last celebration with local party members while he was still in office. Biden did not show.