Democrat Kyle Evans Gay (’12) Announces Campaign to Flip Brandywine Hundred’s 5th Senate District

Kyle Evans Gay (’12), an attorney, activist, and mother of two, announced her candidacy for the Delaware State Senate Thursday.

Gay, 33, said she is running to give Brandywine Hundred a new voice in Dover that will reflect the district’s values, put working families and seniors first, and fight for equality and prosperity for all Delawareans.

“I’m running because there’s too much at stake for families like mine in 2020,” Gay said. “Politics of division are a threat to the future we want for our kids. We need local leaders who will stand up to misguided national policies and who are ready to work toward a brighter vision for Delaware.”

Gay, an attorney who formerly worked for the Delaware Department of Justice and clerked for Delaware’s Superior Court, is running in what some political observers consider one of the most “flippable” state legislative districts in America.

The district, which has been represented by Republicans for more than a generation, was won overwhelmingly by Hillary Clinton in 2016 and has more than 4,200 more registered Democrats than Republicans.

“Voters deserve a choice, but more than that, they deserve an advocate who can speak to their experience of raising a family in today’s changing economy, someone who knows the realities of having to save for college, while paying for child care and managing health care costs,” Gay said. “I look forward to talking with voters about why we should expect more for our district.”

Gay has dedicated countless hours to Delaware nonprofits and previously served on Delaware’s Public Integrity Commission. She has led multiple professional and civic organizations and currently serves as the President of the Junior League of Wilmington, an organization committed to improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.

Over the last two years, Gay worked alongside Delaware ERANow and members of the General Assembly on the First State’s landmark Equal Rights Amendment, which, a century after women’s suffrage, finally enshrined gender-equality in the Delaware Constitution.

“My work on the ERA was fulfilling, but it was hard to imagine that in 2019 we were still fighting for equality under the law,” Gay said. “I have seen first-hand the kind of hard work and collaboration it takes to get big things done in Dover, and I know that there’s so much more to do.”

In 2018, Gay, along with several other like-minded colleagues, became a founding board member of Spur Impact Association, a Delaware nonprofit whose mission is to connect young professionals and inspire them to make an impact through their careers and community involvement. As Board President, Gay has been involved in Spur Impact’s largest initiative, the annual Millennial Summit.

Gay graduated with honors from Brown University, where she met her husband Olin. She later graduated from Boston University School of Law and received a Public Interest Fellowship to work in the Delaware Department of Justice in the Appeals Division.

She lives in Heatherbrooke with Olin, their two daughters, Ellen and Alice, and their dog Brady.