Sen. Chris Coons decisively won Delaware’s Democratic Senate primary Tuesday, defeating three challengers—including a former Republican nominee who now campaigns under the name E. No-Trump Hansen.
Coons received approximately 78% of the vote in the four-way contest, according to Delaware Public Media. He defeated Hansen, artificial-intelligence systems developer Jeff Appelhans and small-business owner Mary Louve.
The incumbent will face Republican nominee Mike Katz, a physician, former state senator and commercial real estate business owner, in the Nov. 3 general election. Katz defeated military veteran John Shulli by a 77%–23% margin in the Republican primary.
But the most unusual element of the Democratic contest was Hansen’s name.
The former business executive previously campaigned as Eric Hansen and won Delaware’s Republican Senate nomination in 2024. He later lost the general election to Democrat Lisa Blunt Rochester.
Hansen subsequently changed his legal name to E. No-Trump Hansen and entered the 2026 race as a Democrat. A Federal Election Commission filing dated July 20 lists his candidacy under the new name and identifies his party affiliation as Democratic.
Hansen said the change was intended to demonstrate his opposition to what he described as presidential overreach.
“Trump has said he’ll go after his critics by any means available,” Hansen told WHYY, adding that he was “willing to bear that risk.”
His campaign emphasized lowering consumer costs, protecting workers from job losses connected to artificial intelligence and limiting executive power. Hansen’s campaign website insisted that the name “isn’t a gimmick,” describing it instead as evidence of his commitment to political change.
The message failed to generate enough Democratic support to threaten Coons, who entered the primary with endorsements from prominent Delaware Democrats, including Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Rep. Sarah McBride and Gov. Matt Meyer.
Coons was first elected in a 2010 special election after Ted Kaufman temporarily filled the seat vacated when Joe Biden became vice president. He won full six-year terms in 2014 and 2020 and is now seeking a third full term.
The senator serves on the Appropriations, Foreign Relations, Judiciary, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Ethics committees. He is also the ranking Democrat on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, according to his official Senate biography.
November’s election will determine whether Coons extends his 16-year Senate tenure or Katz becomes the first Republican to hold a Delaware Senate seat since William Roth left office in 2001.
