Colin Bonini

Colin Rafferty Marie Jude Bonini (born April 14, 1965) is an American politician and a Republican member of the Delaware Senate, where he has represented the 16th District since 1995.

Colin Bonini
Member of the Delaware Senate from the 16th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 10, 1995
Preceded by	William Torbert
Personal details
Born	Colin Rafferty Marie Jude Bonini April 14, 1965 Stanford, California, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Dr. Melissa Harrington ​ ​ (m. 2001)​
Education	Wesley College (BA)

Biography

Born April 14, 1965, Bonini is the son of Charles Bonini and Cissie Bonini Rafferty, who were both professors at Stanford University. He has six siblings, including an identical twin brother, Griffin Bonini, who is a Superior Court judge in Santa Clara County, California.[1]

Bonini received his Bachelor of Arts from Wesley College in 1991. While in college, he worked for United States Senator Bill Roth and the United States Department of State in New Delhi, India. In 2001, he married Dr. Melissa Harrington, a biology professor at Delaware State University. They live together near Dover, Delaware.[2]

Political career

Bonini was elected in 1994 to represent the 16th District in the Delaware Senate.[3] The district covers part of southern and eastern Kent County along with a small portion of adjacent Sussex County. It includes the southern portions of Dover around the Dover Air Force Base and the towns of Frederica and Harrington.

In 2010, Bonini unsuccessfully ran for state treasurer, losing to Democrat Chip Flowers. Flowers received 51 percent of the vote to defeat Bonini by 6,121 votes.[4]

2016 gubernatorial campaign

Bonini announced he would run for governor shortly after the 2014 elections.[5] He stated that his campaign would focus on fixing the state's "significant systemic and fundamental problems." Although facing a significant obstacle as a Republican running statewide in the heavily Democratic state, Bonini said, "I am in it to win it. Delawareans deserve an election, not a coronation."[6]

Bonini competed with former state trooper Lacey Lafferty in the Republican primary election, which he won with 70% of the vote.[7] He lost to U.S. Congressman John Carney in the general election, garnering less than 40% of the vote.[8]

References

1. "Honorable Griffin Bonini". Santa Clara Law. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
2. "Colin Bonini's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
3. "Colin Bonini". Ballotpedia. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
4. "State of Delaware General Election Results". Office of the State Election Commissioner. Delaware Department of Elections. November 5, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
5. Starkey, Jonathan (November 6, 2014). "Colin Bonini: 'I'm running for governor'". The News Journal.
6. Starkey, Jonathan (November 23, 2015). "Sen. Colin Bonini recommits to Delaware governor campaign". The News Journal.
7. "State of Delaware Primary Election Results". Office of the State Election Commissioner. Delaware Department of Elections. September 14, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
8. "State of Delaware General Election Results". Office of the State Election Commissioner. Delaware Department of Elections. November 8, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2019.

External links

• "Senator Colin R. J. Bonini". Delaware General Assembly.
• "Colin Bonini". Official Campaign Website.