Just hours before polls closed on Tuesday, the Vermont Democratic Party issued a “warning” to voters in the Windham-1 district, which includes the cities of Guilford and Vernon, about alleged voter fraud in the Democratic primary for that seat.
According to the party, an anonymous letter sent to Guilford voters ahead of the election spread falsehoods about one of its candidates – Guilford Board of Elections Chairman Zon Eastes – and urged voters to vote against him. The crux of the allegations, which Eastes strongly denied in an interview with VTDigger on Wednesday, was that he and his supporters may have tampered with voters’ ballots in the primary election by illegally gaining access to the city vault where the ballots were kept.
Ultimately, the letter did not doom Eastes. He easily defeated his opponent, Jason Herron, also of Guilford, by 743 votes to 256, according to unofficial results from the Vermont Secretary of State’s office. However, the Democratic Party said in its statement that it investigated the letter for violating campaign laws and reported it to both the Secretary of State and the Vermont Attorney General’s office.
Both Eastes and Herron were vying for the seat currently held by Rep. Sara Coffey (Democrat, Guilford), who is not seeking re-election. Eastes is now scheduled to face Republican Nancy Gassett of Vernon in the Nov. 5 general election.
But Vermont Democratic Party Executive Director Jim Dandeneau and other party leaders linked the letter to a dynamic that emerged in several elections in the state this summer: the Democratic primaries, which featured candidates with conservative ties, including, they said, Herron.
In a party “warning” to voters, Windham County Democratic Committee Chairman Lachlan Francis called the anonymous letter to Guilford voters “the latest in a series of unethical and even illegal actions by far-right candidate Jason Herron” during the campaign, adding that Herron chose to “pose as a Democrat.”
Herron’s campaign website says he was registered as a Republican “several years ago.” He previously told VTDigger he was running in the Democratic race because he felt some of his policy priorities resonated with Democrats and because he knew more locals would vote in the Democratic primary.
In the past, Herron has also publicly expressed support for the Convention of States movement, which calls for a convention to amend the U.S. Constitution. The nonpartisan watchdog group Common Cause has called this movement “dangerous” and said it is being persecuted by “radical far-right actors.”
Contacted Wednesday, Herron referred VTDigger to a Facebook post he wrote in response to the Democratic Party’s message. In the post, he denied responsibility for the anonymous missive and called the party’s rendition “a vicious attack with the deliberate intent of destroying my reputation on Election Day.”
While the Eastes-Herron race was arguably one of the most contentious, it was not the only contested primary that showed party dynamics on Tuesday.
In the Chittenden-17 district, which covers two Burlington neighborhoods, a Democratic incumbent appointed to her seat earlier this year by Republican Governor Phil Scott fended off opposition from a candidate backed by the leadership of the Vermont Progressive Party.
According to unofficial results, Assemblywoman Abbey Duke (Democrat, Burlington) defeated Missa Aloisi 446 votes to 299. Scott nominated Duke for the seat after current Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, a Progressive/Democrat, resigned.
The governor’s appointment drew sharp criticism at the time from the mayor and other progressive politicians, who argued that Scott should have appointed a progressive to the seat. Mulvaney-Stanak was a progressive and led the House Progressive Caucus, although she ran for her seat twice in the Democratic Party primary rather than the Progressive Party primary.
Aloisi was actually one of three candidates the Progressive Party put forward to Scott earlier this year to replace Mulvaney-Stanak, and the governor chose none of them. Mulvaney-Stanak had endorsed Aloisi in Tuesday’s race, as did Lieutenant Governor David Zuckerman, another Progressive/Democrat.
In the Democratic race, competition for progressive-minded voters is “probably the biggest factor” for both candidates, Duke said in an interview on Wednesday.
Other competitive primaries
In total, there were contested primaries this year in just 14 House districts, accounting for 20 seats in the chamber, according to data compiled by VTDigger. (This number does not include candidates who are not registered in the district.) That’s just a small fraction of the 109 total districts — and 150 total representatives — across the state.
Another Democratic primary in Burlington was one of the most densely populated districts in the state. In the Chittenden-13 district, which spans the city’s South End, four candidates vied for two nominations, one of which was open because Rep. Gabrielle Stebbins, a Burlington Democrat, decided not to seek re-election this year.
The district’s other incumbent, Assemblyman Tiff Bluemle, a Democrat from Burlington, finished first with 1,118 votes. Bram Kleppner came in second with 677 votes, but was only 25 votes ahead of Dale Azaria, who finished third. Larry Lewack came in last with 235 votes.
Independent or Republican candidates are not eligible to run for these seats.
The Orleans-4 district, which includes Albany, Craftsbury, Glover and Greensboro, also saw a hotly contested Democratic primary for the seat currently held by Representative Katherine Sims (D-Craftsbury), who is instead running for the Orleans County seat in the Vermont Senate.
In that race, Leanne Harple of Glover – who was endorsed by Sims – defeated David Kelley of Greensboro by 404 votes to 286. In the fall, Harple will face Republican Anthony “Tony” Daniels of Albany.
Further south and west, the two-seat Addison-4 district, consisting of Bristol, Monkton, Lincoln and Starksboro, saw contested primaries on both the Democratic and Republican sides.
In the Democratic race, incumbent Rep. Mari Cordes (D-Lincoln) took first place with 872 votes, while Herb Olson of Starksboro took second place with 671 votes – just 54 more than third-place finisher Jeanne Albert, also of Lincoln. In the Republican race, Chanin Hill of Bristol won with 425 votes; Renee McGuinness of Monkton took second place with 296 votes. Lynne Caulfield, also of Monkton, took third place with just 203 votes and will therefore not be on the ballot in November.
In the Republican primary for the Rutland-Bennington district, which includes Middletown Springs, Pawlet, Rupert, Tinmouth and part of Wells, Chris Pritchard of Pawlet easily defeated Ronald “Ron” W. Lacoste of Wells, 360 votes to 122. Pritchard will face Rep. Robin Chesnut-Tangerman, Democrat of Middletown Springs, who faced no opponent in his primary on Tuesday.
