Vermont Democratic Party chair Jake Perkinson announced his resignation on Wednesday morning. Perkinson says he wants to devote more time to his personal, work and volunteer commitments.
Under Perkinson’s chairmanship, which began in July 2011, the state Democratic Party went from a mostly volunteer and part-time staff operation to a full-time, professional staff.
The party, he said, is “well positioned to go forward.”
“I don’t necessarily have to be the person at the helm,” Perkinson said in a statement. “…the Party has never been stronger or more secure in its operations.”
Perkinson hired a data director, a communications director, a political director, a fundraising director, and an executive director. The Vermont Republican Party, by comparison, has one paid staffer.
“We certainly have a better financial position than ever in an off year,” Perkinson said. “We have a strong fundraising operation, and for the first time that I’m aware of, a fully staffed office in the off year.”
Vice chair Dottie Deans will succeed Perkinson as interim chair, until the party reorganizes in November and elects a new chairperson.
Deans came on board as vice chair just as Perkinson began to lead the state party. Perkinson said Deans has helped to develop strong alliances with county committees, and she is well-versed party operations.
Meanwhile, the Vermont Republican Party is close to hiring a new executive director. That new hire will bring the GOP’s paid staff up from one to two, according to Jack Lindley, the chair of the Vermont Republican Party. A decision will be made by early April.
“It’s basically so we can move forward with our strategic plans that we’ll put in place for the next campaign,” Lindley said. “It’s just part of rebuilding our party. I’m looking forward to ramping up our capabilities.”
Although Lindley said there is no front runner right now, one candidate is Brent Burns, a former political consultant for Republican U.S. Congressman Michael McCaul http://mccaul.house.gov/ in Texas, who has been observing the Statehouse’s weekly House Republican caucus.
Burns declined to comment on the record for this story. According to his public LinkedIn profile, Burns has most recently served as a satellite systems supervisor in Kuwait for the U.S. Army, and is a graduate of Texas A&M University.
Lindley praised Perkinson as a “worthy leader.”
Perkinson said his most important achievement is professionalizing the party and improving its relationships with elected officials. Most recently, he has pushed to increase the amounts that political donors can give to the state party and to statewide candidates in testimony to members of the Senate as they consider reforms to campaign financing.
He doesn’t expect to disappear from the Statehouse in coming weeks. “When you’ve been involved as long as I have, you tend to get sucked into things,” Perkinson said. “I expect I’ll be popping up here and there.”