How to Address a Delegate
Member of the House of Delegates

—-Envelope or address block on letter or email:
—-—-The Honorable
—-—-(Full Name)
—-—-(Name of state legislature)
—-—-(Address)

—-Letter salutation:
—-—-Dear Delegate (Surname):
—-—-—-or
—-—-Dear Mr./Ms. (Surname):

Address formally in writing a delegate to a state legislature as the Honorable (Full Name) and orally – or in s salutation – as ‘Mr./Ms. (name)’.  As a less formal practice, ‘Delegate (Surname)’  is frequently used in the media to clarify who said what and orally anytime it is desired to emphasize the office held.

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

How to Address a State Delegate & Spouse?

How do you address an envelope to our Delegate and their spouse?
—-—-Delegate Terri and Mr. Tom Collins
—-—-(Address)
—-—-—-—-– J.A.W.

Dear J.A.W,

—-On the mailing envelope the elected official gets their name first and kept as a unit.  The spouse is listed second:

—-—-The Honorable Terri Collins
—-—-and Mr. Tom Collins
—-—-(Address)

—-—-The Honorable Tom Collins
—-—-and Mrs. Collins
—-—-(Address)

——–The Honorable Tom Collins
—-—-and Dr. Linda Collins
—-—-(Address)

—-On the inside envelope (or in the salutation) use:

—-—-Mr./Ms. Collins and Mr./Ms./Dr./etc. Collins.

The elected official is listed first.  Formally ‘Delegate’ is not used as an honorific in writing: use ‘Mr./Ms.’.  But, it is a common practice to address as Delegate (Name)’ especially if you know it is the preference of the official:

—-—-Delegate Collins and Mr./Ms./Dr./etc. Collins.

For more on writing women’s names follow the link in the list at right for ‘Mrs. vs. Ms.”

– Robert Hickey

Related Posts:
——–—Couples: Private Citizens
——–—Couples: Christian Clergy
——–—Couples: Rabbis
——–—Couples: Military
——–—Couples: U.S. Officials
——–—Couples: Same Sex

See Also These Related Posts:
–—-—Assemblyman or Assemblywoman, State
–—-—Commissioner, State
–—-—Delegate, State
–—-—Freeholder
–—-—President of a State Assembly
–—-—Representative, State
–—-—Senator, State

How to Address a Former Delegate?

How do I address a former delegate? What about to him and his wife?
– JBL

Dear JBL,
Former members of a state assembly – elected to office in a general election – continue to be addressed in writing as:
——–The Honorable (Full Name)

… on a mailing envelope, address block of a letter, or when their name listed in a program.

After their name in a program or in a complete introduction identify the former official as:

—-—-Member of the XYZ State (name of legislature) from 1990-2010.

—-Envelope or address block on letter or email:
—-—-The Honorable (Full Name)

—-On an envelope with their spouse:
—-—-The Honorable (Full Name)
—-—-and Mrs. (Shared Surname)
—-—-—-or
—-—-The Honorable (Full Name)
—-—-and Ms. (Full Name when her surname is different)
—-—-—-or
——–The Honorable (Full Name)
——–and Dr. (Full Name)
————or
——–The Honorable (Full Name)
—-—-and Mr. (Full Name in every case)

—-Formally in conversation or salutation:
—-—-Mr./Mrs./Ms./Dr./etc. (Surname)

Former delegates go back to whatever honorific to which they were entitled before assuming office. Address by friends using their former honorific on the golf course is unofficial and informal.  As long as there is no possible confusion the person is a former, not current official, most people consider no harm to be done.

– Robert Hickey

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

When Should You Use the Forms on this Page?

You can use these forms of address for any mode of communication: addressing a letter, invitation, card or Email. (If there are differences between the official and social forms of address, I will have mentioned the different forms.)  The form noted in the salutation is the same form you say when you say their name in conversation or when you greet them.
___What I don’t cover on this site are many things I do cover in my book: all the rules of forms of address, about names, international titles, precedence, complimentary closes, details on invitations, place cards, all sorts of introductions, etc. I hope you’ll get a copy of the book if you’d like the further detail.

Not Finding Your Answer?

—-#1)  At right on desktops, at the bottom of every page on tablets and phones, is a list of all the offices, officials & topics covered on the site.

—-#2)  If you don’t see the official you seek included or your question answered send me an e-mail. I am pretty fast at sending a reply: usually the next day or so (unless I am traveling.)  Note: I don’t have mailing or Email addresses for any of the officials and I don’t keep track of offices that exist only in history books.

—-#3)  If I think your question is of interest to others, Sometimes I post the question  – but always change all the specifics.

— Robert Hickey 

Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”

Recommended Resources:  The Protocol School of Washington (PSOW) and Protocol and Diplomacy International – Protocol Officers Association (PDI-POA)    For more information see the Protocol Resources page.