Hicks announces run for Sussex County Council seat

Leader of Sussex Preservation Coalition challenges incumbent John Rieley

by Kevin Conlon, Cape Gazette, March 13, 2026

Five years after Jill Hicks tried unsuccessfully to block a housing development near her home outside Lewes, she announced March 11 that she is taking her fight to limit growth much broader.

“It’s time for me to move from advocacy to action,” she told about 50 people gathered in Georgetown Public Library March 11, as she announced her candidacy for a Sussex County Council seat.

The Democrat said she is challenging incumbent Republican John Rieley, vice president of the council, who is running for a third four-year term.

After the county approved the subdivision five years ago near her house, allowing removal of 110 acres of wetlands and forest, Hicks and Councilwoman Jane Gruenebaum co-founded Sussex Preservation Coalition.

As she began her campaign, Hicks stepped down from leading the SPC, a nonprofit citizens advocacy group that lobbies to influence county decisions. The group has grown to 4,000 members.

Hicks has led SPC since Gruenebaum left to run a successful campaign for a seat representing District 3.

Hicks was chosen to serve on the 10-member Sussex County Land-Use Reform Working Group established by council last year. Over seven months, it formulated 20 recommendations to limit and improve development.

Read the entire article HERE.