Remarks of Ted Kittila
February 11, 2022
Ted Kittila is the Republican Candidate for the 4th Rep District running in a special election on March 5ht.
Good morning. I am Ted Kittila. I am running for State Representative in the special election to be held in just three weeks on Saturday, March 5th.
I am a Delaware native, raised in Seaford. I graduated from Seaford High School, before receiving my degree from the University of Delaware. Upon graduation I was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Germany after which I received my law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School.
I currently practice law here in Delaware and specialize in corporate and commercial litigation.
In 2014, I had never been involved in politics, but I took up the challenge to run for Attorney General because I felt that our criminal justice system needed new thinking and a fresh approach to the then serious rise in crime. Delawareans needed a real choice – not more of the same.
I have entered this contest for State Representative motivated by the same concerns. I firmly believe that we need to bring new thinking and a fresh approach to
Delaware government – To restore balance and be more responsible with the tax dollars of all Delawareans.
The Democrat Party controls every statewide office as well as both the House and Senate in Dover. There is no balance. History tells us time and time again that one Party rule eventually leads to serious problems and out of touch leadership.
That is where we are today. Delaware’s government should be responsive to the public – you, the people of Delaware, you, the voter, you, my friends and neighbors.
Today we face a health crisis, and I am not just talking COVID. Our state is weighed down by outdated policies that are preventing us from adequately serving our friends and neighbors. For example, our state continues to require a Certificate of Need to open a health facility – a policy many states have abandoned because it restricts access to health care and causes the costs to go higher. We need thoughtful discussion and real debate on this.
I am product of Delaware’s public school system – from Kindergarten through College. Good teachers supported by good parents invested in giving me a world class education. Sadly, our children’s education at all levels has been seriously harmed and interrupted, and too often the debate has turned away from parental involvement.
We need to give parents choice about where their children learn and what they are taught. I support school choice and a Parents’ Bill of Rights to assure their preferences are considered in the policies adopted by their school board. When schools have parental buy-in, the positive impact on our children is immense.
Turning to the other end of the population spectrum, I support the efforts, currently under way in the legislature, to restore the full property tax credit to seniors and to reduce the property transfer tax. Delaware passed these increased tax bills when we were not in good financial shape. But now, with a billion (yes, billion with a b) dollar surplus last year that was not used to reduce taxes, and over $800 million in surplus now, we can and should return taxpayer money to the taxpayer.
Throughout my career, I have sought to defend constitutional principles – principles such as checks on balances on government power, representative government, free speech. During the last couple of years, we saw unprecedented steps taken by the executive branch. It is time to restore the balance – specifically with the involvement of the legislative branch. Our state cannot continue to operate under constant extensions of emergency powers exercised by the executive branch. We need to require that the legislature approve any exercise of emergency powers after a certain time, be that 30, 60 or 90 days.
In the course of the campaign, I will elaborate on these ideas, and will also address other issues, such as expanding career training, preparing our workforce to lead Delaware’s businesses in the future, providing affordable college education, protecting our Second Amendment rights, keeping our environment clean and keeping Delaware a great place to live.
In this short three week campaign, I will reach out to you, my friends and neighbors, to hear your concerns – your ideas on what we need to do to make life in Delaware better for you.
Delawareans deserve a real choice. It is time for new ideas and new approaches and not just – well the old way is fine. That’s the way we do things. Don’t rock the boat.
A new wave is coming. And, yes, we are going to rock the boat! We are going to make things different. We are going to make things better!
Thank you!!
