With the tally from the state's recent primary election finalized, the Vermont Republican Party has fielded 22 new candidates in the state House races, adding to the 74 already on the ballot for the 150-member state Legislature.
While the state is considered a Democratic leaning state nationally, Vermont Republican Party Chairman Paul Dame said Monday the development was unusual given the state's tendency to blur partisan lines.
He cited the state's recent “double-digit” property tax hikes and voters' renewed focus on the presidential election as reasons for the Republican surge.
“Based on what's happened so far, I think we're definitely poised to win the seat. There seems to be a energy and unity on the Republican side that we haven't seen in a while,” Dame said.
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Vermont Governor Phil Scott (Philscott.org)
Dame said Gov. Phil Scott, a moderate Republican who has the nation's highest approval rating of any public official, 81 percent, and who is active in the party's activities, did not respond to a request for comment.
Dame said he had spoken to several new candidates, including a man from Colchester who had not said either way when the petition was circulated in May.
“Every summer he'd get his kids ready for school, and he'd say, 'Look, from now on, Vermont is going to be our home. I promise we're going to stay here, and then I want to run and change the course we're on,'” Dame recalled.
In Vermont, many of those who arrived late to vote appear to be following a similar timeline.
Once the primary election votes are finalized in May, voters may find there are vacancies on the final ballot and try to organize write-in ballot campaigns.
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If 25 voters write the same name for a House seat, or 50 voters write the same name for a state Senate seat, that name will appear on the ballot in November's general election.
While 96 Republicans is still some way off from two decades ago, when Vermont had 130 Republicans on the ballot, it is significant that Vermonters are beginning to take a path of service.
“This is the story of ordinary voters who saw the need for change and decided to step up and be a part of it,” he said.
“It's definitely inflation and rising home prices. I think it's a national issue, but Vermont adds a new element to it.”
With Democrats recently gaining supermajorities in the Legislature, Governor Scott has issued a record number of vetoes, and Democratic legislators have responded by issuing a record number of veto overrides.
Such was the case in the property tax debate, with Scott saying,Tax cuts nowMeanwhile, House Speaker Jill Krowinski (D-Chittenden) said the governor had failed to offer sufficient alternatives.
When it comes to Republican prospects in November, Vermont tends to be an ideologically divided election.
Scott enjoys overwhelming support, on par with that of self-described “democratic socialist” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont).
“Vermonters vote for authenticity,” Dame added.
“And Governor Phil Scott and Senator Bernie Sanders have a great relationship with the people of Vermont, and Vermonters know that they believe what they're saying. They're saying something completely different, but they know that what they're saying can be trusted and they're not pandering.”
Neither Scott nor Sanders are afraid to criticize their own party.
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On the left, Peter Duvall and Esther Charlestin were two Democrats running against Vermont's Republican governor, Phil Scott.
Sanders has frequently criticized President Biden and congressional Democrats, while Scott was the first Republican governor to support an impeachment inquiry into former President Trump.
In the latest University of New Hampshire poll, Sanders is leading Republican opponent Gerald Malloy 66-25%, while Scott is leading Democrat Esther Charleston 55-28%.
Former Vermont Sen. Jim Jeffords, who famously gave up Republican control of the Senate by becoming a Democratic independent in 2001, was the last Republican from the Green Mountain State.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Vermont Democratic Party for comment but had not heard back at the time of publication.
