First for February 17, 2017

Special Election
The balance of power could shift in the General Assembly on February 25th when voters in the Middletown and Glasgow areas cast their ballots in a special election. Bethany Hall Long vacated the 10th Senate District seat when she became Delaware’s Lieutenant Governor. The balance of the state Senate now tied at 10. Our First Look introduces the candidates and their issues.

The Tornoe Spin
In some ways that 10th Senate race is an example of national politics on a local level. Another national issue that we are witnessing on a local level is the controversy over sanctuary cities. Rob Tornoe has some thoughts about that and joins us on First this week.

Prison hostage incident
On Tuesday, Governor John Carney appointed retired Delaware Supreme Court Justice Henry du Pont Ridgely and retired Family Court Judge William Chapman to lead an independent review of the prison hostage incident at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna.

White Guy on the Bus
Roz and Ray are a nice young couple from Philadelphia’s main line. Both are white. Roz is a teacher in a tough urban school. Ray happens to be taking a bus where he encounters Shatiq. She’s an African-American single mother and nursing student. Where is all this headed? It’s the latest offering from the Delaware Theatre Company. It’s called White Guy on the Bus.

Dace on Business
Governor John Carney has named his private-public economic group. They have two months to come up with some recommendations for building the Delaware economy of the future. John Stapleford of Decon First also has some opinions on the state’s economy. He shares them in this month’s Dace on Business segment.

First Experience: Driving Desire
Cars are a huge part of American culture. Advertising plays a big role in influencing our decisions on what car to buy and when. An exhibit at the Hagley Museum and Library looks at car advertising in the 20th century. First Experience takes to the open road for a look.