Former Delaware State House Majority Whip John Viola has died
Viola was the patriarch of a political family.
John Viola was a prominent political figure in the State of Delaware. It was announced on February 15, 2026 that he had passed away.
A Democrat, Viola was first elected to the Delaware House of Representatives from the 26th District in 1998, defeating Republican incumbent Richard F. Davis. He was named the Majority Whip of the House in 2013 and remained so until 2019. The following year, Viola lost his bid for another term in the Democratic primary to Madinah Wilson-Anton, who went on to win the general election.
Viola was a graduate of H. Fletcher Brown Vocational High School in Wilmington, Delaware and Goldey-Beacom College. He served in the Vietnam War with the United States Air Force and as a volunteer firefighter in Christiana, Delaware. Additionally, he had two children with his wife Anita.
For portions of his legislative career, John Viola was working alongside his daughter Andria and her husband Brad Bennett. Andria Bennett was a staffer for her father before holding a seat in the House from 2013 to 2022 after Brad occupied it from 2009. Currently, she is the City Clerk of Dover, Delaware.