He worked on several political campaigns in his early career , including Ronald Reagan 's 1980 presidential campaign . In college he switched from being a Republican to a Democrat , and in 1996 he became a delegate from Wilmington to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago . His political career began in earnest on the New Castle County Council in 2000 , where he served as council president . He was elected county executive in 2004 and served for six years . There he balanced the county budget with a surplus in fiscal year 2010 by cutting spending and raising taxes , and the county maintained a AAA bond rating
Democratic National Convention
1996 Democratic National Convention
Chris Coons