Democrat Russ McCabe seeks 36th District seat

Russ McCabe, director of Delaware Public Archives for more than 30 years, is seeking the 36th Representative District seat.

Republican Rep. George Carey, first elected in 1984, announced in December he would not seek reelection to the 36th District seat, spurring a race that quickly drew candidates.

Last month, Harvey Kenton, a Greenwood-area farmer and businessman emerged as the Republican contender for the race.

Democrats now hope to wrest a seat that has been a GOP stronghold for 25 years.

McCabe, a Democrat, who filed Wednesday, Feb. 24, said he would work in a bipartisan manner – a longstanding Delaware political tradition.

“With so many issues of critical importance facing our state’s leaders today, we cannot afford the crippling effects of partisanship. As a parent and person with a deep love for his native state, my goal is to do whatever is necessary to ensure a brighter future for our neighbors and their families,” he said.

One of his priorities is to create jobs, and preserve existing businesses and agricultural interests in the 36th District, which includes Milton, Greenwood, Ellendale and Milford.

“One of the things we need is jobs, new businesses and industries. I’d like to reward creativity and ingenuity and help businesses grow,” he said. He said the state is at a crossroads and faces many challenges, but being a historian has prepared him to use history as a way to approach the future. “We need to be sure while creating jobs, at the same time, we protect jobs. Agriculture has been a staple of our economy since the first days of the Colonial era,” he said.

McCabe, 53, is a lifelong Sussex County resident who is no newcomer to elected office.

From 1987 to 1991, he served as Sussex County recorder of deeds, where he said he successfully lobbied Sussex County Council to build a new building to replace a small, outdated office. “It was a serious space crunch in one of the busiest offices in the county. The squeaky wheels demanded grease at the time,” he said.

McCabe said he was also instrumental in convincing council to include row offices among regular county employees under the state’s merit system.

McCabe was born Milford, raised in Georgetown, and in 1974, he graduated from Sussex Central High School. In 1978, McCabe received degrees in history and geography from Radford University in Virginia. He soon began his career at the Delaware Public Archives, one of the oldest archives in the country, retiring in 2009.

McCabe lives outside Milton with his wife, Michele. The couple has two sons, 19 and 23.

“In Delaware, I’ve observed how government works and doesn’t work. All parties still roll up their sleeves and work together. We can’t let party politics get in the way of progress,” he said.

McCabe is known to many Cape Region residents for dedicating historical markers dressed in period costumes.

Next week, he said he plans to dress as Methodist circuit rider Frances Asbury, wearing “silly knee britches and a frock coat.”

He said he’s not giving up impersonations, but not so much on the campaign trail, he said, with a laugh.

McCabe is working on a website, meeting with voters and planning meet-and-greets in the 36th District.

“I realize how lucky and blessed I’ve been with friends and family. I’ve got a great opportunity now. It’s my obligation to serve constituents, an obligation, or payback, if you will. Running for office is another step in that direction,” he said.