“Where are the Bernie signs?” she asked. “When I see Bernie, I’m going to lose it.”
Soon an audience of 500 in the local high school auditorium was applauding as gubernatorial nominee Sue Minter, lieutenant governor candidate David Zuckerman and attorney general aspirant TJ Donovan took the stage. But attendees saved their biggest cheers for the man who brought them all together, independent U.S. senator and former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
“This is perhaps the most progressive county in the state,” said Sanders, who has led nearly a dozen similar events in Vermont this month. “But the point is not just the percentage of the vote. What is important is the number of people. Let us have a very, very large turnout here in Windham County.”
Some may consider the southeastern map point an annex of Massachusetts, yet it boasts the state’s highest percentage of residents who vote Democratic — even higher than Chittenden County, according to a review of past election results.
Consider the 2006 race for governor, in which Republican incumbent James Douglas swept every county except Windham. Or the most recent contest in 2014, where Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin won a squeaker by snagging a state-high 62 percent of his home-turf vote.
“This is the bluest county in the bluest state in the nation,” Zuckerman told the rally crowd. “We need more votes and more turnout in the bluest areas.”
That’s especially true for Minter, as two gubernatorial campaign polls show her running behind Republican Phil Scott.
“This is a very close race,” she said. “I need to win Windham County big.”
Minter received help Saturday from several peers. State Sen. Becca Balint said she had heard from many local voters that Scott, the current lieutenant governor, was “a nice guy.”
“We don’t need a nice guy,” Balint said. “We need a doer. We need a fighter.”
Added Sanders: “The issue is not whether or not Sue’s opponent is a nice guy. It’s not a personality contest. Democracy is about which candidates have the vision and ability.”
Rally organizers noted that Vermont’s voter turnout hit a record low during the last election. They encouraged attendees to both cast ballots and encourage friends and neighbors to do so.
“How do you have people of different points of view discuss issues civilly?” Sanders said. “Our job in this small state is to lead the country in revitalizing American democracy. We need everybody’s help.”
Democratic candidates in attendance credited the man who prides himself on being the nation’s longest-serving independent politician for bringing them together.
“Thanks to Sen. Sanders,” state House candidate John Moran said, “the force is with us.”
