Susan Stewart enters Rehoboth Beach’s 2025 election
With a little less than a month until the filing deadline, Susan Stewart has entered the race for Rehoboth Beach’s 2025 municipal election. She filed her paperwork May 5.
Currently a planning commission member, Stewart said she’s running to restore the trust of the community in the commissioners. The commissioners are polarized, and things need to get back to normal, she said.
Looking to improve discourse between the public and city officials, Stewart is aiming to be a bridge for common ground.
She said the city’s government has been going through the motions of public participation for several years. It’s checking the box and perfunctory, she said.
“Public input has been a problem, not a welcome thing,” said Stewart. “I would come to this position with a very open mind.”
Going along with a lack of public input is a lack of transparency.
A lack of transparency is why the city got in trouble with the city manager contract, said Stewart, referencing the controversy surrounding the hiring of City Manager Taylour Tedder. It was self-inflected and easy to remedy, she said.
It’s important to work together, collaboratively, but in the eye of the public, said Stewart.
Professionally, Stewart has been a financial advisor for decades, including owning her own independent firm for 15 years. She also earned a law degree from Penn State Dickinson Law.
Stewart is a member of the Ursinus College board of trustees, in the college’s Athletics Hall of Fame and played on the U.S. women’s lacrosse team.
Stewart believes her sports background is as important as her financial background. Sports are a great way to teach leadership and resolve, she said.
“I’m a person who welcomes challenges,” said Stewart. “I’m not afraid to be rough and tumble, but I’m also going to get up, brush off the dirt and then shake hands.”
Stewart is the second person to file for this election in Rehoboth. Resident Jeffrey Goode filed April 15. The two sitting commissioners up for re-election are Edward Chrzanowski, who is in his second three-year term, and Francis “Bunky” Markert, who is in his first.
Additional election information
Rehoboth Beach’s 2025 annual municipal election is Saturday, Aug. 9. Interested candidates must turn in a petition signed by at least 10 qualified voters, but not more than 25, to the city manager by 4:30 p.m., Monday, June 2. To get a nominating petition, submit a request to elections@cityofrehoboth.com or call Donna Moore or Steven Perry 302-227-6181, Ext. 159.
To be eligible to vote, a person must be 18, a resident, freeholder or leaseholder, and registered in the city’s books of registered voters. If a registered voter misses two consecutive annual elections, their name will be placed on an inactive list and they will be notified by postcard requesting their voting status. The deadline to register is 4:30 p.m., Thursday, July 10.
Absentee ballots will be available beginning Wednesday, June 25. Ballots will be sent to everyone who has an absentee ballot request form on file. Any qualified elector may request an absentee ballot to vote by filing a request for an absentee ballot form no later than noon, Friday, Aug. 8. The deadline for the city to mail ballots is Tuesday, Aug. 5. Ballots must be received by mail or in person before the polls close on the day of the election.
For more information, contact Donna Moore at 302-227-6181, Ext. 108, or go to cityofrehoboth.com.
Chris Flood has been working for the Cape Gazette since early 2014. He currently covers Rehoboth Beach and Henlopen Acres, but has also covered Dewey Beach and the state government. He covers environmental stories, business stories and random stories on subjects he finds interesting, and he also writes a column called Choppin’ Wood that runs every other week. He’s a graduate of the University of Maine and the Landing School of Boat Building & Design.
