This former Delaware Natural Resources secretary is considering running for governor
Former Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Collin O’Mara announced Monday he is “exploring a run” for governor of the First State.
O’Mara, who served as the department secretary from 2009 to 2014 under then-Gov. Jack Markell, said he filed a campaign committee with the state election commissioner seeking the Democratic nomination for Delaware governor in 2024.
“There are historic, unprecedented levels of investment that we could be making in our state right now,” O’Mara said, pointing to federal funding for green infrastructure and other environmental improvements. “And yet the debate so far hasn’t been particularly substantive. We need to be leading.”
O’Mara’s interest in Delaware’s gubernatorial race would pit him against Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long and New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer, both of whom are vying for the Democratic nomination.
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Vision for Delaware
O’Mara, who is the current CEO of the National Wildlife Federation, has worked for years to reduce air pollution, bolster climate resilience, build clean energy and expand public trails, parks and wildlife refuges. As governor, he said his vision focuses on improving Delaware’s economy, education, environment and equitable access to housing, healthcare and public safety.
By using federal funding in key economic sectors, O’Mara said he’d create 40,000 “family-sustaining jobs” through President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the CHIPs and Science Act.
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These efforts would focus on achieving 100% clean energy and net-zero emissions by “aggressively removing pollution from our water, air, and soils, leading on offshore wind and solar, repowering industrial facilities and heavy transportation vehicles with green hydrogen, and investing in energy efficiency,” he said, noting these industries would create jobs.
With the campaign committee created, O’Mara said over the next month he will be working to show that he can raise money and build his campaign. He said he’d make a formal announcement about a run in the New Year.
Experience in public leadership
When O’Mara was appointed as secretary in 2009, he was the youngest person to become a cabinet secretary in the nation at the age of 29.
During his tenure with the state’s Natural Resources and Environmental Control department, O’Mara spearheaded a variety of initiatives, including Delaware’s “No Child Left Inside”/Children in Nature campaign to introduce more children to the outdoors and the First State Trails and Pathways Plan, which expanded and connected the state’s trail system. He also established the Delaware Bayshore Initiative to promote the region as a “world-class conservation and outdoor recreation destination.”
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O’Mara joined the National Wildlife Federation in 2015, where he has played a critical role in passing various federal initiatives and funding.
He has helped secure “hundreds of millions of dollars for Delaware to advance environmental justice, natural resource restoration, clean water, community resilience, and clean energy investments, including the recently announced award for the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub that will create thousands of union jobs in Delaware.”
O’Mara lives in Bear with his wife, Krishanti, and their three daughters ages 11, 6 and 7 months old.
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Former DNREC secretary considers run for Delaware governor
