Ruth Ann Minner Sworn In As Delaware’s 72nd Governor
Dover – Ruth Ann Minner became Delaware’s 72nd Governor and its first woman chief executive at noon on Wednesday in a bipartisan ceremony in Legislative Hall. Afterwards, she appointed her cabinet as her first official act.
Because Minner is Delaware’s current Lieutenant Governor, she took office 13 days early when current Gov. Tom Carper resigned to be sworn in to the U.S. Senate. The Delaware Constitution mandates that the governor be inaugurated on the third Tuesday in January, which this year falls on Jan. 16. Formal inaugural events will still take place on Jan. 16.
“There is much to be done and I want to get started. Those of you who know me know I am not shy. To me, these extra 13 days are an opportunity not to be squandered,” Gov. Minner said. “So I will begin my work today, with old friends in the General Assembly and my friends in my cabinet.”
Minner’s swearing-in took place on the center staircase in Legislative Hall. State Treasurer Jack Markell will serve as master of ceremonies for the event. State Senate President Pro Tem Thomas B. Sharp, State Senate Majority Leader Thurman Adams Jr., State Senate Minority Leader Steve Amick, State House of Representatives Majority Whip Clifford Lee and State House of Representatives Minority Leader Robert F. Gilligan will each take part in the ceremony.
The oath of office prescribed by Article XIV of the Delaware Constitution was administered by the Honorable William J. Walls Jr. of the Family Court of the State of Delaware, a longtime friend of Minner’s who administered her oath each time she was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor. Minner’s daughters-in-law – Margaret Ingram, Phyllis Ingram and Cindy Ingram – held Minner’s personal Bible as she took the oath.
After the ceremony, Gov. Minner signed Executive Order No. 1, naming her cabinet nominees as “recess appointments,” a designation under Article III, Section 9 of the Delaware Constitution that will allow them to begin work immediately but which makes them subject to eventual state Senate confirmation. After Executive Order No. 1 was signed, all new cabinet members will be sworn in.
