Dwayne Bensing didn’t just study the law; he lived the consequences of when it fails the vulnerable. As a child, Dwayne’s life was upended by a car accident followed by his mother’s Legionnaires’ disease, leaving his family filing for bankruptcy and losing their mobile home. He knows what it’s like to sleep in a sleeping bag on a grandmother’s floor because the system favored a corporation over a working family.
That experience fueled a career of service — from teaching middle school to serving in the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division and as Legal Director of the ACLU of Delaware. Dwayne has spent his life speaking up when it’s unpopular and suing the powerful when they overstep. He isn't just "made for the moment"—he is ready to lead us through it.
Dwayne Bensing’s commitment to justice isn’t academic—it’s personal. Growing up, Dwayne saw firsthand how quickly the scales can tilt against a working family. At birth, his parents were faced with the impossible decision of asking a family friend, known to Dwayne as his grandma, to raise Dwayne because they could not make ends meet. Later in childhood, just as his parents seemed to get on their feet, his mother totaled the family car in a workplace accident, only to then find herself recovering from Legionnaires’ disease for weeks, in and out of intensive care with limited health insurance coverage. The resulting financial fallout led to bankruptcy and the loss of their mobile home. Dwayne and his sister returned to spending nights, often in a sleeping bag, on his grandmother’s floor. When Dwayne was a freshman in college, he returned to take care of his grandmother, who had multiple sclerosis, and his grandfather, a World War II veteran dying of lung cancer. The following decade, through teaching, law school, and the first years of his legal career, Dwayne took care of his grandmother, helping her navigate health and accessibility issues that routinely face those who are aging. Dwayne learned a lesson he carries to this day: when the system fails to hold the powerful accountable, it is the vulnerable who pay the price.
Dwayne has spent his career in the trenches of civil rights and government oversight. As the Legal Director for the ACLU of Delaware, he has enforced accountability by managing high-stakes litigation. He has challenged cruel and unusual punishment in prisons, fought for transparency through FOIA actions, and protected First Amendment freedoms.
Before joining the ACLU-DE, Dwayne proved his independence as a whistleblower within the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights–taking on Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos. Facing retaliation for pushing back against an unlawful directive aimed at harming transgender students, Dwayne took a stand. He successfully sued the Department under the Whistleblower Protection Act, proving that he will always prioritize the rights of the people over his own career security.
As a product of traditional public schools and a former middle-school teacher in Philadelphia, Dwayne knows first-hand that education is the most powerful tool for social mobility. At the ACLU-DE, he helped lead a landmark victory for Delaware students. By suing the State and all three counties, Dwayne helped secure a historic settlement that:
His work extends beyond the courtroom. As Vice-Chair of the Delaware Human and Civil Rights Commission, Dwayne presides over evidentiary hearings to resolve discrimination complaints and develops policies to modernize Delaware’s civil rights framework. He also trains the next generation of advocates as an Adjunct Professor at Delaware Law School, focusing on the dignity rights of incarcerated populations.
From being named one of Delaware Today’s Top Lawyers in Civil Rights to his service in the U.S. Department of Justice, Dwayne has remained consistent: he speaks up when it’s unpopular, he sues when rights are violated, and he wins.
Dwayne is running for Attorney General to ensure that the "Delaware Way" works for everyone, not just the well-connected. He is ready to bring a New Guard of leadership to the Department of Justice—carrying the torch for a future defined by transparency, accountability, and equity.
