Delaware public affairs professional and moderator. He is senior director of public affairs and advocacy at Convergence Public Affairs and previously served as government affairs manager for AAA Mid-Atlantic, after more than three decades in Delaware's media, political and policy communities, including work with WDEL and the Delaware State News.
Case
Republican U.S. House nominee Joe Arminio was removed from a Delaware candidate forum after repeatedly using male terms for Rep. Sarah McBride. She asked that he stay; organizers cited a warning to show respect; fellow Republican Mike Katz urged Arminio to withdraw.
Role at the time: Moderator of the Jewish Federation of Delaware candidates forum, in a statement to The Philadelphia Inquirer
Statement summary
In a statement to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Grant, who moderated the forum, said the ground rules shared with candidates in advance were clear: “treat everyone on stage with respect.” He said Arminio declined to do so after a clear and public warning and that the rules were applied as they would have been for any candidate, of any party, on any subject. He asked that attention remain on the nine candidates who “spent the evening answering voters’ questions thoughtfully and civilly.”
“treat everyone on stage with respect. … When a candidate declined to do so after a clear and public warning, the rules were applied — as they would have been for any candidate, of any party, on any subject.”
Relative to the case’s fixed reference point — Arminio’s use of male terms for McBride at the forum after correction and warning, and his removal for it — Grant condemns the conduct, describing it as a refusal to treat everyone on stage with respect after a clear warning, and defends the removal as the even-handed application of a rule. Following this dossier’s convention that a position on the removal is a position on the conduct that drew it, support for the removal is recorded as condemnation of the conduct. The closest competing label is defends_or_excuses, which loses because what Grant defends is the response, not the conduct under scrutiny.
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
