[T]reasurer Beth Pearce won re-election handily Tuesday night with about 75 percent of the vote.
Pearce, a Democrat who also ran on the Republican ticket, said she has big plans for this year in an office she’s held since January 2011.
“Going forward, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” she said. “I’m all about the work, and getting that done.”
A major aspiration of hers involves extending pension plans to approximately 104,000 Vermonters whom the AARP has identified as lacking a pension plan, Pearce said. Her office plans to bring to the Legislature this year a plan to accomplish that.
“We want to provide retirement opportunities for 104,000 individuals that don’t have pension plans, and at the same time do it in a way that provides retirement security but does not add to the state liability,” Pearce said.
“When people have adequate and reliable income in retirement, it’s good for the economy and good for the individual,” she said.
Pearce also hopes to bump up the amount the state invests within its borders from its $3 billion public pension fund, which stands at around $33 million right now. She thinks that can be done in a way that creates jobs and moves the state toward meeting its housing goals while bringing in a good rate of return on the investment, Pearce said.
Though Pearce won by huge margins, she said she’s uninterested in any higher office.
“I have no other political ambitions,” she said. “This is the job I like, this is the job I’m good at, it’s a job I hope to do for a long time for Vermonters. This is not a stepping-stone to somewhere else.”
Auditor
Doug Hoffer, a Democrat/Progressive, won re-election as the state’s auditor, beating Republican Dan Feliciano by a wide margin. Hoffer has held the office since January 2013.
Hoffer’s opponent was largely absent from the race, he said.
“I don’t believe he’s even filed a campaign finance report,” Hoffer said.
His priorities this year: “We’re trying to get as much product out as we can, though I hate to call it product,” Hoffer said.
The product of his office is audits, and Hoffer said he’s got a few underway.
One concerns the Agency of Natural Resource’s Department of Environmental Conservation. Another has to do with the Department of Buildings and General Services. A third involves the Department of Human Relations. He’s also looking into the Department of Taxes.
Most of his audits conclude with recommendations for improvements.
“There’s almost always room for improvement, but I would love to do one of these jobs and say, ‘Hey, we have no recommendation,’” but most audits find things that could be done better, Hoffer said.
Nevertheless, he’s managed to stay well-regarded on both sides of the aisle, and Hoffer said that’s not an accident.
“Before I got elected I said the work of the office was nonpartisan,” Hoffer said. “I treated it that way, I think people see that and respect that, and I think that’s part of the reason I’m getting the vote.”
The 10 professional staffers in his office cleave to Hoffer’s approach, he said.
“They’re completely apolitical in their work, and they should be — they make me look good,” Hoffer said.
Secretary of state
Jim Condos won re-election as secretary of state with the most votes of any politician in statewide office.
Nevertheless, Condos said he “didn’t really campaign.” A former state senator, Condos has held the secretary of state position since 2010.
He ran this year with both the Democratic and Republican nominations against Liberty Union candidate Mary Alice “Mal” Herbert, who won around 10 percent of the votes.
A couple big items are before Condos this time around, he said.
By January of next year, he’ll need to put in place same-day voter registration across the state, Condos said. He’ll also need by July of next year to have implemented automatic voter registration.
He’s also hoping to work with the Legislature on ethics reform, and perhaps establish an independent ethics commission, Condos said.
This was a big year for his office, setting at least one record by the end of Tuesday night.
The previous record for voter registrations was 461,900, set in 2012, Condos said. This year registrations exceeded 470,800.
Early and absentee voting may have eclipsed the 94,000-ballot record set in 2008, with at least 92,000 having been sent back and with “a good chance” that another 2,000 will end up having been counted by the end of Tuesday night.
Turnout could set a new record, too, Condos said. In 2008, 326,000 Vermonters voted. Depending on turnout this year — typically between 65 percent and 72 percent of registrations — between 305,000 and 338,000 Vermonters will have voted.
