McGuiness officially files for state Legislature run

Former state auditor Kathy McGuiness officially filed to run as a Democrat for the seat held by a retiring Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf.

Her filing for the 14th District seat comes on the heels of a Friends of Kathy McGuiness committee that was established April 11 with the Department of Elections.

The former state auditor and Rehoboth Beach resident would make the Democratic primary a three-person race for Schwartzkopf’s seat, which he has said he will vacate at the end of this legislative session. Democrats Marty Rendon and Claire Snyder-Hall already officially filed for the seat. 

McGuiness had previously served as a Rehoboth Beach commissioner before her election as state auditor in 2018. She lost a primary race in 2022 following a criminal trial on felony and misdemeanor charges in which a jury found her guilty of two misdemeanors – conflict of interest and official misconduct. Upon appeal, Delaware Supreme Court vacated her official misconduct charge due to legal inefficiencies that prejudiced the jury during the 2022 criminal trial. The Attorney General’s Office recently said it will not pursue a new trial on the official misconduct charge.