Senator Laura Sturgeon

Laura Viviana Sturgeon is a Democratic state senator representing Delaware's Fourth Senate District, which includes West Brandywine Hundred, Greenville, Centerville, Hockessin, and parts of Pike Creek.

Sturgeon is a first-generation daughter of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Her father was a DuPont engineer, and her mother was a schoolteacher who later worked in social work with Catholic Charities. She was raised with a strong emphasis on education and using her skills and talents to help others. She and her husband Bill reside in Woodbrook with their standard poodles and rescue cats.

Education and Early Career

Before entering politics, Sturgeon worked as a high school English Literature and Spanish teacher in Delaware's public school system. She became active in education advocacy through her involvement with the teacher union movement, serving on an appointed position with her local teacher union's executive committee and later winning a seat on the board of the Delaware State Education Association, the state's largest union. She was also involved in various community groups and nonprofit organizations, with a particular passion for women's rights and public education policy.

Political Experience

Sturgeon won election to the Delaware State Senate in 2018, defeating a long-time, well-financed incumbent through grassroots activism. She made history as the first Latina ever elected to the Delaware State Senate, which she has identified as one of her proudest accomplishments.

In her legislative career, Sturgeon currently serves as chair of the Senate Education Committee and holds membership on the Banking, Business & Insurance, Environment & Energy, and Joint Finance committees. She also serves on the Elections & Government Affairs and Labor committees.

Notable Achievements

Her legislative accomplishments include:

• Reforming school funding to direct more resources to students with the greatest need
• Increasing teacher pay and adding nearly 500 mental health counselors and social workers to elementary and middle schools
• Improving reading instruction methods to enhance literacy performance in the state
• Securing 12 weeks of paid family leave for families welcoming newborns or caring for elderly parents
• Fully funding services for people with intellectual disabilities
• Passing gun safety legislation
• Protecting reproductive rights and expanding access to reproductive health services
• Implementing early voting and same-day voter registration