Speaker of the House Shap Smith usually commutes between his home in Morristown, law office in Burlington and the State House in Montpelier. But on Friday, the 49-year-old Democrat drove 2.5 hours south to Brattleboro as part of a statewide tour to help him make up his mind.
“It’s one of those things I need to know,” he said, “so I can tell people who might be involved what I’m going to do.”
Smith wasn’t expecting to spend his summer mulling over a candidacy by meeting with party faithful. But after Gov. Peter Shumlin announced last month he won’t seek re-election, a Who’s Who of colleagues began considering a run.
Among Democrats, the press has floated the names of Smith, former state senators Matt Dunne and Peter Galbraith, Transportation Secretary Sue Minter, Progressive Sen. Anthony Pollina, former Human Services Secretary Doug Racine, Agriculture Secretary Chuck Ross and, until they bowed out, Chittenden County State’s Attorney T.J. Donovan, Natural Resources Secretary Deb Markowitz and U.S. Rep. Peter Welch.
Political insiders say of those, only Smith, Dunne and Minter are making moves to be considered serious contenders for a Democratic primary. Smith, for example, has traveled in the past several weeks to Addison, Chittenden, Rutland, Windham and Windsor counties.
“I’m reaching out to people to get a sense of what they’re looking for and concerned about,” Smith said in Brattleboro. “It’s early — people are appropriately cautious about jumping in as supporters — but they want to hear what the field might be.”
Smith is inquiring about campaign specifics: How many staffers and how much money would he need? Although he won’t reveal just what experts are suggesting — in the last race without an incumbent five years ago, Shumlin spent more than $1 million — Smith would say, “it’s sobering when you see how much campaigns cost.”
Dunne, for his part, is set to file papers with the Secretary of State on Wednesday confirming a campaign fund of at least $500. He cautions that his money — approximately $2,000 — is left over from an unsuccessful 2010 gubernatorial bid. That said, he adds he’s “strongly considering a run.”
“I’m reaching out to Vermonters across the state to see if people are ready for a new vision for how to grow our economy and support our communities,” Dunne said after traveling from his Hartland home to Manchester and Burlington. “That due diligence takes time, and we’ll make an announcement when it feels ready — certainly before the new year.”
In the meantime, curious voters can log onto the Google exec’s website, www.mattdunne.com, which features links to his “Matt Dunne for VT” Facebook and Twitter pages.
Minter, a former state representative and Tropical Storm Irene chief recovery officer, also has her own Internet address (sueminter.wordpress.com) and Twitter feed.
“I’m definitely considering all of my options, and those include running for office,” she said. “But right now I’m very focused on work.”
(To confirm that, she used the phone call from a Brattleboro-based reporter not to talk off-the-record politics but instead to inquire about any local issues with a $60 million bridge replacement project — the biggest in state history — now under way between Interstate 91 exits 2 and 3.)
Among Republicans, the press has floated the names of former state auditor Randy Brock, former Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie, 2014 Libertarian candidate Dan Feliciano, Campaign for Vermont founder Bruce Lisman, 2014 party nominee Scott Milne and Lt. Gov. Phil Scott.
Scott, the highest-ranking current GOP officeholder on the list and his party’s most probable candidate, couldn’t be reached for comment, but has said he’s considering a run and will decide by the end of the year.
Kevin O’Connor, a former staffer of the Rutland Herald and Barre-Montpelier Times Argus, is a Brattleboro-based writer. Email: kevinoconnorvt@gmail.com