State Rep. Paul Baumbach, who has represented Newark's 23rd District in the state House for the past 12 years, will retire at the end of this year's term.
Baumbach made the surprise announcement on the House floor Thursday evening. The Democrat had filed to run for his seventh term in February.
“I’ve had the privilege of representing the 23rd District in the House of Representatives for the past 12 years and it has been a tremendous honor serving the residents of our district and our state," Baumbach said in a statement. “However, after careful consideration and consultation with my family, I have decided that it would be best to step away from elected office."
He said he is proud of the work he and his colleagues have done to make Delaware a leader in gun safety, protect reproductive health, secure benefits for working families, and enhance the effectiveness and responsiveness of Delaware’s government.
“Yet, everything we do in Dover we do with others. By definition, what any one legislator does here is a rounding error compared to what we accomplish together. I offer my gratitude and best wishes to all of my colleagues," he said. “This was not an easy decision, but it is the right one for myself and my family. I would like to extend the sincerest thanks to my family, friends, colleagues, and the residents of the 23rd District for their support.”
With Baumbach's decision to withdraw from the race, that leaves no one currently filed to run for the seat. The filing deadline is July 9. The heavily Democratic District 23 encompasses the northern half of Newark, plus parts of North Star and Pike Creek.
Baumbach lives in the Evergreen neighborhood and works as a senior wealth manager for Mercer Advisors.
He was first elected in 2012 and was unopposed in the next four elections. He easily defeated a Republican challenger in 2022 to win his sixth term.
Baumbach's retirement announcement comes as one of his signature pieces of legislation, the medical aid in dying bill , nears its final vote. House Bill 140 would allow for physician-assisted death.
Baumbach has been working on the issue since 2015, and it passed the House for the first time last month. It is now awaiting a vote in the Senate.
During a 2022 interview, Baumbach called working on the bill his proudest moment in the legislature. When he started pushing for the legislation, he couldn’t find a single co-sponsor, but it gradually won more support.
“It’s come a long way, and that comes not by twisting arms, but just by patiently raising the issue,” Baumbach said. “The more people learn about it, the more they’re like, ‘You know what, I either want that for myself when I get old if I get to that point, or I don’t want to say no to someone else who wants it when they get a terminal diagnosis.’”
He pointed to medical aid in dying and other efforts like legalizing home birth midwives as examples of how he works on issues that typically fly under the radar.
“One of the focuses I look at is, what can I do for people who don’t have a big voice in the process?” he said. “You know, there’s no lobby for people who are dying.”
In the 2022 interview, Baumbach said that beyond legislative successes, he is also proud of his work on constituent services, like connecting a resident with the resources to help a child having a mental health crisis.
“You want your elected official to support you in some important policy issues, but you also want them to be there for you when life is really crappy,” he said. “That made me really appreciate how important the role of a state rep or a state senator can be for a constituent who probably doesn’t think twice about politics, but rather is just living their life.”
In a statement, Senate President Pro Tempore Dave Sokola, Senate Majority Leader Bryan Townsend, and Senate Majority Whip Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman praised Baumbach as “an unflinching champion for progress, social justice, and some of our state's most vulnerable neighbors.”
“Throughout his legislative career, he has stood at the forefront of our work to protect abortion rights, expand voting access, reduce gun violence, lower healthcare costs, reduce pollution, and create a legal and well-regulated adult-use cannabis industry, among so many other critical issues,” they said. “He also has been a stalwart advocate for the City of Newark whose role in building a vibrant walkable, bikeable community with incredible parks and accessible rail service has often been underappreciated.
“His compassion, combined with his fearless willingness to push for progress even when it isn't politically popular has been a hallmark of his leadership,” the statement continued. “Perhaps nowhere is that as evident than in his unabated work on Delaware's death with dignity legislation.”
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