He’s endorsing Curtis Linton to succeed him in NCC Council District 4
County Councilman Penrose Hollins is retiring from the New Castle County Council. He’s best known for helping working families buy their own homes, breaking racial barriers and standing up for what he believes is right. As he prepares to step down from representing the Fourth District, he shared his story and his endorsement in an interview with DelawareLIVE.
From Florida to Delaware
Hollins moved from Florida to Delaware in 1967. He worked at DuPont for about 30 years as a research technician, according to a Congressional Record tribute, while dedicating himself to bringing positive change wherever he had the opportunity.
For example, early in his career, while serving on the Wilmington City Council, Hollins stood up against South Africa’s former system of racial segregation. Under this system, known as apartheid, laws strictly separated people of different races and treated Black residents unfairly. Hollins sponsored legislation requiring the city to divest its public investments from companies doing business there, making him the second elected official in the continental United States to take that stance. Hollins said the move drew him significant attention, not all of it positive, and colleagues began calling him the “International Counselor.”
A Historic Leader for New Castle County Council
Hollins later made history as the first Black person elected to the New Castle County Council, telling DelawareLIVE his arrival integrated the body and shifted the balance of power. In 1997, his fellow council members elected him the first African American to serve as County Council President Pro Tempore, the council’s vice president, a milestone the same tribute independently confirms.
Helping Families Achieve the American Dream
Of all his work, Hollins is proudest of housing. He believes owning a home is the foundation of a successful life and the surest path to the middle class. To help make that happen, he helped create programs new to the region:
- Inclusionary zoning: Hollins backed rules requiring new residential developments to set aside a share of homes at affordable prices, or pay into the county’s Housing Trust Fund to build affordable housing elsewhere.
“The way my legislation is crafted means that once you come to us for a rezoning, if you get the rezoning, it comes with inclusion,” he told DelawareLIVE. “It’s all part of the package.”
- Down payment help: He says he helped create the county’s Down Payment and Settlement Help Program for first-time homebuyers, one of the legislative achievements he’s proudest of.
Additionally, his record reaches well beyond housing, too. He led the fight to save the Absalom Jones Art and Senior Center from closure, kept the Senior Meal Program funded at 14 centers, and has helped direct $15 million over the years toward youth summer jobs.
Colleagues have taken notice. “We call you the godfather of affordable housing,” Council President Monique Williams-Johns told him at a council meeting in June 2026, according to Delaware Public Media.
A Vision for the Future: Endorsing Curtis Linton
Hollins says his district includes about 50,000 residents. To carry his work forward, he’s endorsing Curtis Linton to succeed him, one of two endorsements he’s made this election cycle. He also crossed district lines to back Kyle Grantham in the neighboring District 3 race…