By Sean O’ Sullivan (October 6, 2010)

[In pertinent part]

In Delaware’s lower-ticket races, there is a dead heat in the competitions for state treasurer.

The telephone poll of 801 randomly selected Delaware voters was conducted from Sept. 27 to Oct. 3 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 points.

In the race for state treasurer, Democrat Chip Flowers, who upset sitting treasurer Velda Jones-Potter in the primary election, was even with his Republican challenger, State Sen. Colin Bonini, with each receiving support from 38 percent of those polled.

The poll showed Flowers had stronger support upstate and among Democrats while Bonini led downstate and among Republicans. The poll showed 21 percent, mainly voters who identified themselves as independent, are undecided.

Poll director Peter Woolley, a professor of political science at Fairleigh Dickinson, said he does not expect many of those undecided voters to break for either Flowers or Bonini by election day. Instead, he said “these unsure voters will resolve their dilemma by not casting a vote in this particular race.”

To read the entire article, click here.

By Ginger Gibson (August 24, 2010)

Wilmington, Del. – Two Democrats running for state treasurer have loaned their campaigns a combined $280,000, augmenting the less than $60,000 they’ve collected in donations this year, according to the most recent filings.

In one of the few contested primaries for statewide office, Velda Jones-Potter, who was appointed to the seat in 2008, and Chip Flowers,  an attorney from Wilmington, are vying for the Democratic nomination. The primary will be held on Sept. 14 and the winner will face Republican state Sen. Colin Bonini.

The economy is keeping potential donors from opening the checkbooks, Bronstein said.

“Fundraising numbers across the board are down about a quarter if you look across the country,” Bronstein said.

Flowers said he doesn’t expect to get the money back, even if he prevails and donations start rolling in during the general election. He added that given the economy and his ability to self-fund, he isn’t inclined to start asking voters to donate.

“I want to show the people of Delaware that I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is and invest in ideas I believe in,” Flowers said.

In other races, candidates also reported sizable fundraising totals.

New Castle County sheriff candidate Trinidad Navarro has raised more than $33,000 since the start of the year. When he filed his first report in January, the then dark-horse primary challenger to longtime incumbent Mike Walsh reported just $34 in funds raised.

Walsh hasn’t filed his report yet and is the only candidate not to have done so. He was given an extension, Election Commissioner Elaine Manlove said.

Walsh said Monday night that he’s raised $20,000.

Democratic Auditor candidate Ken Matlusky reported $14,000 in funds raised, and his primary opponent, Richard Korn, reported $9,420.

Also notable were the filings for the primary in the 19th Senate district between former Georgetown Mayor Joe Booth, who won the seat in special election, and tea party-aligned Eric Bodenweiser.

Bodenweiser reported $17,570 raised — $16,000 of which was from himself. He started the year with nothing and spent $14,679.55, leaving him with $2,890.45 entering the last month of the primary.

Booth raised $7,450, but he started the year with $32,870.56 from previous campaigns. Going into the last month of the campaign, Booth has $27,003.16 to spend.

The winner of the primary will likely head straight to Dover because no Democrat has stepped up to run for the seat.

All candidates in primaries filed reports covering funds raised from Jan. 1 until last week.

Flowers, who jumped into the race before Jones-Potter announced she would seek election to the office, loaned his campaign $200,000 from his personal money, according to his campaign finance disclosure filed last week.

“I have been blessed with a successful business and have the ability to loan myself that amount of money,” Flowers said.

His loan comes in addition to the $27,000 he raised in donations, mostly from attorneys and residents of the state.

Jones-Potter, who was appointed by Gov. Jack Markell to the seat when he vacated it, made two loans to her campaign, $55,000 in December of 2009 and $25,250 in May, according to her campaign finance disclosure filed on Monday.

Jones-Potter, whose husband is Wilmington Councilman Charles Potter, raised $31,940 in donations.

“She made a loan to the campaign and it’s going to be used however it needs to be used to help her win,” campaign spokesman Michael Bronstein said.

Contributions to both candidates were mainly small amounts from Delaware residents, with few donations approaching the $1,200 limit for statewide candidates.

After expenses, Jones-Potter reported $39,000 entering the last month and Flowers had $79,000 on hand.

Flowers thinks donors are waiting for the primary to end before before writing checks.

“Most Democratic donors, particularly in this climate, are saying, ‘We like Chip. We like the current treasurer, and we want to wait before we give money to either one of them,’” Flowers said.

Delaware State Treasurer: Chip Flowers for State Treasurer (D)

By Angel Clark

A comprehensive voter’s guide to Chip Flowers! In an effort to remain objective to all candidates, most of this information will be posted directly off of Chip Flowers for State Treasurer. Each candidate will be given the same luxury. Chip Flowers is a registered Democrat.

According to his website, “Chipman “Chip” Flowers Jr., a resident of Delaware since completing his college education, brings to the campaign for state treasurer a fresh perspective on the financial challenges facing Delaware, along with the necessary experience, education and values to restore prosperity to the First State.”

“After majoring in economics with dual minors in international relations and psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, Chip headed to Georgetown University, where he earned both a law degree and a Master’s in Business Administration, focusing on corporate strategy and mergers and acquisitions. While Chip attended Georgetown, he worked at the A. Philip Randolph Institute, the Congressional Joint Economic Committee and the White House Office of Political Affairs under President Bill Clinton.After completing his work at the White House, Chip worked as a mergers and acquisitions attorney at the Wilmington office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP, and served as chairman of the Multicultural Judges & Lawyers Section of the Delaware State Bar Association. In 2004, Chip was chosen as a Delaware delegate to the Democratic National Convention. During this time, Chip was selected to serve as Chief Democratic Analyst for Delaware nightly news, Delaware Tonight – a position he held until WHYY-TV recently eliminated the program.Chip then studied at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, earning a Master’s in Public Administration. While at Harvard, Chip earned the prestigious Don K. Price Award – the highest award given in the program.In 2006, he founded the Flowers Counsel Group, LLC, which specializes in mergers and acquisitions and procurement law, advising businesses on contractual agreements for major purchases. Under his leadership, the firm has grown steadily, becoming one of the state’s leading corporate law firms in providing corporate purchasing services for global and Fortune 500 clients, including Harvard University and Delaware corporate leaders such as DuPont, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Bank of America, Barclay’s Bank Delaware, ING Bank, FSB and the Buccini/Pollin Group.”

Chip’s affiliation’s are also listed on his website:

Delaware
Chair, Alexis de Tocqueville Society, United Way of Delaware
Board of Trustees and Board of Directors,Delaware Symphony Orchestra
Secretary, Board of Directors,OperaDelaware
Board of Directors, Nehemiah Gateway Community Development Corporation
Board of Directors, American Red Cross of Delmarva
Chair, Multicultural Judges & Lawyers Section,Delaware State Bar Association
Member, Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League
Board of Advisors, Trustees of Color
Board of Directors, Kuumba Academy Charter School
Board of Directors, Kalmar Nyckel Foundation
Delegate, Democratic National Convention 2004
Member-At-Large (Appointed), Executive Committee,Delaware State Bar Association
Director’s Circle (John Sloan Society), Delaware Art Museum
Democratic Analyst, WHYY Delaware Tonight
Columnist, Delaware Today
Columnist, In Re, Official Magazine of the Delaware State Bar Association
Other
Don K. Price Award, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government
Member, Warren Bennis Leadership Circle, Harvard University Center for Public Leadership
Member, Union League
Belknap Society Member, Massachusetts Historical Society
Fellow, Museum Council, Museum of Fine Arts
Inductee, Cambridge Who’s Who
Member, Harvard Club of Boston
Member, Harvard Club of New York
Member, NAACP

You can follow Chip on Twitter, “like” him on Facebook, or even watch his videos on Youtube!

You may contact Chip through his campaign at:

Flowers for Treasurer
1105 N. Market St., Suite 800
Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone: (302) 656-7360
Email: info@chipflowers.com

For a complete copy of the article, please visit http://www.examiner.com/x-54868-Delaware-Elections-2010-Examiner~y2010m6d26-Delaware-State-Treasurer-Chis-Flowers-for-State-Treasurer.