[H]ouse Speaker Shap Smith dropped out of the race for governor Tuesday.
At a press conference, Smith disclosed that his wife, Dr. Melissa Volansky, has been diagnosed with breast cancer and that he needs to focus on his family as she continues to receive treatment.
“Melissa was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this fall and she recently underwent surgery,” Smith said on the steps of the Statehouse. “We were very optimistic that that was the course of treatment she would need when the surgery took place, but the doctors have told us that more treatment is necessary to ensure a full recovery.
“We are partners in everything we do,” Smith added, “and I intend to be by her side as she gets better.”
Smith missed aVTDigger economic forum with gubernatorial candidates of both parties earlier this month to spend time with Volansky, who had just undergone surgery. He said he made the decision to suspend his campaign last week after doctors said his wife would require more treatment.
Smith, who is 49, said he would continue to serve Elmore, Morristown, Woodbury and Worcester in his role as representative and House Speaker, but that he would not seek re-election in 2016.
House Democratic Leader Sarah Copeland-Hanzas, D-Bradford, said she would work with others in the Legislature to lighten Smith’s load as speaker in the next session.
“The best that we will be able to do for them right now is to buckle down and make sure that we get prepared for a legislative session,” Copeland-Hanzas said. “And be prepared to take on some of the burden so that he will have time, come January, to be home on weekends and not be making a ton of phone calls to move legislation.”
Volansky urged her husband to continue the race for governor despite her medical condition, but Smith said he felt he needed to step away from his bid to ensure a sense of normalcy for his young children, Eli and Mia.
“At the end of the day, my wife and my kids are what’s important to me,” he said.
Smith thanked family, friends and constituents who had offered support over the past weeks, saying “our fridge is full of food, [and] our foyer is full of flowers.”
The announcement was an abrupt end to Smith’s bid for governor, and perhaps his political career. He has served as speaker for eight years and has been in the Legislature since 2002. He served on the Ways and Means and Joint Fiscal Committees in the Legislature before he became speaker. He is also a partner at the Burlington law firm Dinse Knapp McAndrew.
In a September poll from the Castleton Polling Institute, Smith had the highest name recognition and favorability of any Democratic candidate. Fifty-two percent of respondents gave Smith a favorable rating. Lt. Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican candidate for governor, nabbed 70 percent.
Smith said he would not endorse a candidate for governor, and that he would support the eventual Democratic nominee. The remaining Democratic gubernatorial candidates are former Transportation Secretary Sue Minter and Google executive Matt Dunne.
Minter said Tuesday that her heart goes out to Smith and his family. She said Smith didn’t contact her before his announcement with the news, but that the initial news of Volansky’s surgery was worrying to her.
“Shap is a friend, who I admire greatly, and it is not surprising to me that he is putting his family ahead of all else,” Minter said.
In a Tweet, Dunne said he and his wife, Sarah, were praying for Smith and his family.
Sarah & my thoughts and prayers are with Shap and Melissa today.
— Matt Dunne for VT (@mattdunnevt) November 17, 2015
Gov. Peter Shumlin, who is retiring after his current term, also offered support for the speaker and his family.
“I have an incredible amount of respect for Shap as a leader and person, for all he has done for his state, and for all he will continue to do on behalf of Vermonters,” Shumlin said.
Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., praised the couple’s contribution to the state. Welch, who briefly considered running for governor himself, said Smith’s decision showed a deep commitment to his wife and family that was admirable.
“For them, the timing could not have been worse,” Welch said. “But that was beyond their control. What was within their control was how they responded.”
Eric Davis, a retired professor of Political Science at Middlebury College, said he imagined the state’s tight-knit political community would continue to offer support to Smith and his family.
He said that it was too early to tell how the speaker’s exit would impact the race, adding that Minter and Dunne are strong candidates. He said Smith’s exit could open the door for another Democrat to enter.
“Will there be any other candidates that now get in?” Davis said. “Peter Galbraith has been talking about it, we could also see someone else in the Legislature, but it’s too early to talk names.”
Smith is not the only Vermont politician to leave a gubernatorial race for reasons related to health. The late Barbara Snelling dropped out of a 1996 race for governor after suffering a stroke.
