[W]ATERBURY — Sue Minter officially kicked off her gubernatorial bid Tuesday at the local train station with what she described as a message of hope.
Minter was a key player in the state’s recovery from Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 and 2012, and as the deputy secretary of the Agency of Transportation she saw firsthand how Vermonters selflessly pitched in to help neighbors get medical help and rebuild homes in the aftermath of the state’s worst flooding disaster. Gov. Peter Shumlin named Minter as secretary of the Agency of Transportation about a year ago.
“Some of you may wonder why I have hope,” Minter said. “It’s because I’ve had the extraordinary experience, the privilege, of seeing Vermont at its toughest times, and also at its best.”
Minter says she wants to address difficult issues the state faces, namely a lagging rural economy and the opiate addiction problem.
A boisterous group of more than 100 people attended the kickoff event, some snacking on cider and donuts provided by the campaign. Many held signs supporting Minter and cheered loudly as she floated policy proposals in her speech.
Minter said her priorities would be improving the economy, investing in infrastructure, reining in property taxes and enhancing educational opportunities at all levels.
While recent polls show few Vermonters know who Minter is, she has already racked up endorsements from two key Democrats in the state, former Gov. Madeleine Kunin and former Lt. Gov. Doug Racine, both of whom spoke at her campaign kickoff.
“It’s about time for the second woman governor, and someday we will stop counting,” Kunin said. As she spoke, a horn blared as a train whizzed along the tracks. “That’s my exclamation point,” Kunin concluded to cheers from the audience.
Minter, who served as the state’s chief Irene recovery officer, picked Waterbury as the setting for the kickoff because the town was hard hit by floodwaters from the storm. Residences, businesses and the state office complex were heavily damaged by Irene.
Minter told her supporters that the cleanup effort in Waterbury and other areas of the state near the Green Mountain National Forest was nationally recognized.
“We moved mud and mountains, and it was our sense of community – that we were all in this together — that is what compelled us,” Minter said. “We didn’t wait for Washington to tell us how or when to build. We got right to work, and we rebuilt for the future.”
Minter stressed the need to address climate change in order to preserve tourism and ensure that another Irene doesn’t batter the region. She also advocated for the creation of more green energy jobs in Vermont and said she would enhance the state’s preparedness for future storms.
Minter was appointed by Gov. Peter Shumlin to President Barack Obama’s Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, and co-chaired the White House Task Force Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery and Resilience.
When Colorado was hard hit by flooding in September 2013, Shumlin appointed Minter as the leader of a Vermont team tasked with helping coordinate cleanup efforts.
Minter has worked closely with Shumlin, who is unpopular with many Vermonters. After her resignation as transportation secretary in September, Shumlin called her “an invaluable asset to the state of Vermont.”
While Minter didn’t level any direct attacks on the administration in her speech, she acknowledged issues with the setup of Vermont Health Connect in a media scrum after the event, and said a Minter administration would not be a continuation of Shumlin’s.
“The governor and I are very different people,” Minter said. “I think we will have a very different leadership style, certainly we didn’t agree on everything.”
Minter’s two Democratic primary opponents for governor are House Speaker Shap Smith and Google executive and former state senator Matt Dunne. Smith kicked off his campaign over the summer and Dunne held an event in Barre’s City Hall Park Monday officially declaring his bid.
In the press conference, Minter addressed specific policy questions that were absent in her speech.
She said she was supportive of the new education reform law, Act 46, but she doesn’t like the spending cap provisions in the law. She said she would support expanded treatment of opioid addiction as governor, and that she supported the legalization of marijuana.
“As the former secretary of transportation I want to know that we have very clear and enforceable impaired driving laws, including a roadside test,” Minter said.
While Dunne’s message on Monday painted a somewhat bleak portrait of the state, Minter was all smiles in her speech, though she acknowledged areas where improvement is needed.
“I want you to know that I hear you,” she said. “And I’m running for governor because where I see problems, I also see potential.”
