Charles Copeland
14 years ago, Charlie took over a small, family-owned printing company and grew it into an industry leader employing many local residents. As a businessman, Charlie has proven his ability to serve and lead people, create jobs, overcome obstacles, meet a budget, and make tough decisions in the real world. Now more than ever, these are the skills we as taxpayers need in Dover.
Charlie is also a proven reformer and citizen activist. In 2002, fed up with a state government that was simply spending too much and wasting too much, he stood up and successfully ran for State Senate. As a State Senator, Charlie has led the fight to rein in out-of-control spending as well as make government more open, honest and accountable.
Charlie is an active community volunteer who gives his time, effort and leadership to numerous civic organizations. He is the President of the Board of the Challenge Program and in that role helped provide real world job skills to disadvantaged youth. He is also involved with the Longwood Foundation, the Mount Cuba Center, the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation, and the Delaware Workforce Investment Board.
Married for 21 years, Charlie and his wife Bonnie live in north Wilmington with their children, Stephanie and Will. They attend Christ Episcopal Church of Christiana Hundred. Charlie was born and raised in Delaware, graduated from Duke University with a degree in Computer Science and Physics and then earned a M.B.A., also from Duke.
Education: Charlie believes there is no reason that our public schools cannot perform as well as our private schools - and he wants to make sure they do. Charlie is also a believer in school choice to foster that same competition and accountability. Health: Charlie Copeland believes the best way to make health care more accessible is to make it more affordable...and that the best way to do that is provide Delaware's citizens with greater choice, control and ownership of their health care coverage. Environment: To protect our air and water quality, Charlie will push for laws with real teeth when it comes to corporate pollution - forcing polluters to clean-up their messes and helping prevent future messes from occurring. Public Safety: Preventing crime can best be accomplished by making sure everyone has the chance to become independent, productive members of society. Charlie will push to improve our public education system, provide job training, and reduce the illegal drug problem. Economy: Delaware must focus its energy on attracting the businesses of tomorrow like renewable energy and late stage bio-tech opportunities to our state while implementing policies that spark new growth for existing employers, small businesses and entrepreneurs.
Matt Denn
Matt grew up in New Castle County, attending Yorklyn Elementary and H.B. du Pont Middle School. When his family moved to California, he finished high school there and went to the University of California at Berkeley, where he was elected president of the student body.
After that came Yale Law School, where he blended typical achievements, like making law review, with some not-so-typical ones. While in charge of Yale’s prestigious annual mock court competition, he decided to forgo the usual list of federal judges and legal scholars who often served as guest judges at the event. Matt’s choice: Judge Wapner from TV’s “The People’s Court.”
From 2001 to 2003, Matt served as chief legal counsel to Governor Ruth Ann Minner at the start of her term. He wrote legislation and negotiated with members of the General Assembly to pass new laws like the Patient’s Bill of Rights, giving patients power the ability to stand up to insurance companies and the Emergency Health Powers Act, improving the ability of the state to respond to a bioterrorism attack.
In 2004, Matt won both a primary and the general election to become the state’s Insurance Commissioner, turning an office that had been forgotten by many into a strong advocate for Delaware consumers.
Matt married his wife Michele in 2002 after proposing to her on the boardwalk in Rehoboth, where they had met. Their dog Lenny joined the family in summer 2004. On December 29, 2004 – just days before Matt took office as insurance commissioner – twins Adam and Zach were born.
Education: Matt Denn believes that a focus on responsible spending in education is important to better serve today’s students, and to rebuild the public’s confidence in the public schools. Health: Matt's agenda includes assuring health insurance for every child in our state by the end of 2010 as the first step towards the goal of universal health care coverage. Environment: Strict and unyielding regulation of air pollutants and a focus on cleaning up lead paint are the environmental issues affecting children that Matt will take on as Delaware’s next Lieutenant Governor. Public Safety: Matt will expand the efforts of the Criminal Justice Council to bring coordinated efforts of law enforcement to bear on high-crime areas. Matt also believes the state must improve its efforts to provide job training to inmates returning to the community. Economy: Matt intends to use the Lieutenant Governor's office to help Delaware recruit and retain businesses by leading a responsive, flexible state government where businesses can have access to their elected leaders.
