Incumbents Bernie Sanders and Peter Welch easily captured the Democratic nomination in Tuesday’s congressional primaries, with the Associated Press calling Sanders the Senate winner at 8:07 p.m. and Welch the victor in the House at 8:36 p.m.
With nearly two-thirds of the state’s 275 voting districts reporting, Sanders was capturing 92 percent of the vote in his campaign for a third six-year Senate term. Sanders, an independent, ran on the Democratic ticket against Folasade Adeloula of Shelburne.
Welch, who is seeking his seventh term in the House, was receiving about 80 percent of the vote. His main challenger, Dan Freilich, was capturing about 11 percent of the vote. A third candidate, Ben Mitchell, who withdrew from the race last week during a radio debate, was receiving just more than 4 percent.
Welch had taken heat from Freilich who criticized Vermont’s lone congressman for taking corporate contributions from the pharmaceutical industry.
“I hope we helped Vermont by bringing up these subjects,” Freilich said, “so maybe democracy was helped.”
Freilich spoke with Welch after the AP called the race and wished him luck. He said his intention was never to attack the congressman personally but to show how the “Democratic establishment” continues to take money from corporations.
“I honestly didn’t want to go after Welch. I wanted to go after the establishment in the Democratic party,” Freilich said, “I must tell you the worst part of campaigning is appearing negative. I would reflect on that and at the end of the day, I was telling truth to power. I thought it was the right thing to do, to point out that we can do it better.”
In a statement, Welch said he was “gratified by the overwhelming support of Vermonters in today’s primary election” and that this first victory is one step toward getting a Democratic majority in House of Representatives in order to put pressure on President Donald Trump.
“This election is critical for the future of our country. Donald Trump’s policies are horrendous,” Welch said,” I am optimistic that we will have a Democratic majority in the House next year that will hold the President accountable, reverse his policies, and revive our democracy,” he said.
Sanders, 76, left Vermont early in the day to appear on “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert in New York City.
He lost a bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, and has gained national popularity for his progressive views on a host of economic issues, including a Medicare for all plan. He has long railed against a self-interested oligarchy of “millionaires and billionaires” who he says have subverted democracy. Sanders himself is now a millionaire thanks to recent book deals and speaking tours.
A long-dominant force in Vermont politics, Sanders has held the junior Senate seat since 2006 and previously served in the U.S. House, starting in 1990.
On the Republican side, H. Brooke Paige and Lawrence Zupan were in a close race to face Sanders in the November general election for Senate. Paige was also leading in the contest to face Welch for the House seat, gaining about 40 percent of the vote to 24 percent for Anya Tynio.
