[R]epublican Fred Baser believes he may have benefited in his 2014 House race from a surprisingly weak showing by Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin. Baser finished first in the two-member Addison-4 district that year, ousting an incumbent Democrat who had narrowly beaten him four years earlier in Baser’s first attempt at the office.
In 2014 Shumlin won re-election over Republican Scott Milne in an unexpectedly close race.
“It could’ve had some impact in this district,” said Baser, a Bristol resident. (Turnout was roughly the same in 2010 and 2014.)
However, this year’s dynamic, both at the state and national level, is markedly different.
Addison-4 includes the towns of Bristol, Monkton, Lincoln and Starksboro. Valerie Mullin, who also ran in 2014, is the other Republican candidate this year. On the Democratic side are Rep. David Sharpe, of Bristol, and newcomer Mari Cordes.
As a Republican, Baser said he’s had to make a concerted effort to distinguish himself from Donald Trump, the party’s presidential candidate. “When things seemed to be suggesting he could be a player, I said openly I don’t think he’s qualified to be president,” Baser said. “However, when you have an ‘R’ next to your name it can be difficult.”
Mullin said it can also be an asset. According to her, she’s had Democrats tell her they’ve never voted Republican but plan to do so this time around. “People are even more upset than last time,” she said. “They feel like Montpelier is not listening.”
In his first two years in the Legislature, Baser voted for education spending bills that have led to slight increases in property taxes. They were H.853, H.361 and Act 46. He was also among a handful of Republicans in the House to support an increase in fees on items ranging from marriage licenses to the registration of mutual funds.
In addition Baser supported bills to expedite the Act 250 permit process in counties with high unemployment, an angel investor tax credit and same-day voter registration.
Baser said if re-elected he would focus on affordable housing, workforce training and improvements to infrastructure.
Mullin, who lives in Monkton, said she used to live in a mobile home park and worked third shift at a factory to raise her kids. She said the fact that Vermont is a small, friendly state can sometimes work against political newcomers because no one wants to vote against a neighbor or someone they’ve supported in the past.
Trump isn’t the only high-profile political player who may influence the Addison-4 outcome. The other is Sen. Bernie Sanders. Just before the August primary Sanders endorsed Cordes, a nurse and union organizer who lives off the grid in Lincoln.
The endorsement from Sanders and the support of his 501(c)4 organization, Our Revolution, led to a windfall of donations for Cordes. According to her October campaign finance filings, she has raised more than $20,000 during the campaign, far more than any of the other candidates.
But Cordes has pushed a similar message to Sanders on everything from health care and the environment to education and tax policy. She supports single-payer health care, aggressive action to tackle climate change, and progressive tax reform.
“I will support any smart way to move toward single-payer,” Cordes said. She said the Affordable Care Act had moved Vermont backward and that she was “frustrated with where we are right now.”
Cordes said she would support a sensible carbon pollution tax, phased in over time, as long as it did not hurt those who can least afford it. She is a member of the board of 350.org, the environmental group founded by Bill McKibben.
Sharpe, who has served in the House for 14 years, said he would not support a carbon pollution tax and that ads suggesting all Democrats would are misleading.
“The Republicans have decided all Democrats are painted with the same brush,” Sharpe said. “I think voters are smart enough to know that’s not the case.”
Sharpe favors investments in renewable energy and weatherization of homes, businesses and state buildings. He said that with the exception of the town of Bristol, education property taxes are down in the Mount Abraham Union Middle/High School district.
Sharpe said when he ran in 2014 property taxes were a key issue. “We worked on that to put downward pressure on school spending,” he said.
In addition, Sharpe said he has secured funding for infrastructure work in the district, an amphibian crossing that allows salamanders to safely pass under a busy stretch of road in Monkton, and the closing of the landfill in Bristol.
Sharpe said the Addison-4 race is usually competitive and that in recent years the campaigns have become increasingly negative. “The attacks are common. They happen fairly often,” he said. “But they’ve gotten more intense in the last few years.”
