BENNINGTON — Ten candidates are running for three selectboard seats in Bennington. It is a crowded race, but a typical scenario these days after Covid-19 conditions made it much easier to run for public office in Vermont.
Incumbent selectboard memberJim Carroll, a former state representative, is running for another three-year term, but Selectboard Chair Donald Campbell decided against running for re-election, and will leave the board. A third seat, carrying a one-year term, is open because board member Bill Scully died of cancer last summer.
Chris Bates, Mike Bethel, Jim Carroll, Tina Cook, Gary Corey, Colleen Harrington, Kevin Hoyt and Nancy White are running for two three-year board seats.
Bethel, Harrington, Hoyt, Phillip Guerard and Tom Haley are running for a single one-year seat. If any of the people running for two positions are elected to both, they will have to choose one.
Candidates’ ideas represent a full spectrum of ideology on local issues. Campbell, the outgoing chair, said the board now has one of the most progressive makeups in recent history, but he wonders if it may have become more progressive than the average Bennington resident.
The March 2 elections could mark a shift for the seven-member board.
“Which way is Bennington going to break?” Campbell said. “I think it’s sort of an interesting question.”
Candidates answered questions about their platforms at a two-hour forum hosted on Friday by CAT-TV and Bennington Banner Executive Editor Kevin Moran, who acted as a moderator.
Police reforms
Reforms in the police department have been at the center of many townwide conversations since 2018, when Kiah Morris stepped down as a state legislator because of racial harassment. Many now say that the response to the harassment by local and state officials was underwhelming.
Those incidents prompted a department-wide review by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and citizen advisory committees are now reviewing several policy reforms at the department.
At the forum, candidates generally agreed that reform was necessary but varied on the amount and process.
Cook and Haley said more reforms within the Bennington Police Department are needed and the town needs to go further to act against biased policing and welcome more Bennington residents into the reform process.
Cook said she’s also participated on the advisory board — which is how she got involved with the town government in the first place — and has specific ideas for reform.
“How many times do we have to be told? How many reports with data do we need to read?” she said. “Yes, I believe that reform is definitely needed.”
If elected, Cook would be the first person of color on Bennington’s selectboard.
Haley, who chairs the county’s Democratic Party, would like to see a citizen board that would oversee police, not just advise them.
Guerard, who was unable to participate in the forum, told VTDigger that he believes the selectboard is on the right track with police reforms, but has also been disturbed by Bennington’s crime rates.
Hoyt said he thought Morris’ claims about being harassed were “false or exaggerated.” Hoyt, who ran for governor and state Senate in November, has widely shared QAnon theories in Facebook videos and traveled to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6 to join protesters who believed there was voter fraud in the presidential election — claims that have been debunked. Hoyt also alleges voter fraud in Bennington elections and has called for the arrest of politicians in state and federal government, including Vermont’s attorney general.
He said the board has invested too much in police reforms, and though he supports police, he thinks “criminal” police need to be rooted out.
“I remind people that we have about an opioid crisis every day, we have homeless people freezing to death in our streets, and here we are talking about, in my opinion, a non-issue,” he said.
Mayor question
A question on the ballot March 2 will ask voters if the town should change its charter to allow a mayoral form of government.
All the candidates opposed the idea except Harrington, who was undecided, and White and Bethel, who had advocated to put the question on the ballot, according to the Bennington Banner. Similar proposals have been defeated several times in Bennington since the 1990s.
White and Bethel favor a system in which an elected mayor would replace the town manager and run the town government, alongside the selectboard. They say a mayor would have more power to move forward on his or her vision of the town.
Opponents say voters already have representative government in the form of the selectboard. Longer-term town administrators are accountable to the selectboard and have more institutional knowledge of the town, they say.
Guerard also opposes switching to a mayor and told VTDigger he worries that a mayoral election could become a popularity contest, leaving the town with a leader who may not have appropriate administrative or managerial chops.
Managing the opioid crisis
Asked about the opioid crisis in town and whether the selectboard could do more to combat the problem, Bates, Cook, Corey and Haley said they’d rely on experts at the local and state level — for example, the Turning Point Center — and try to boost recovery and mental health resources along with related issues such as greater access to affordable housing.
Carroll advocated taxing retail cannabis and using the money for a rehabilitation center, which would also lift a burden from the police department.
Guerard, Harrington and White also emphasized the need for recovery centers and said legal punishment should be more severe for drug dealers.
“When they get caught with large amounts of drugs, they need to be prosecuted, sentenced and sent to jail,” Harrington said.
Hoyt said the town and state should use existing money, taken from law enforcement and incarceration, to open large recovery centers, which he imagines would also create jobs.
Covid-19
In the last month, Bennington County residents have contracted Covid-19 at a rate higher than anywhere else in New England, though the county’s rates have recently started to slow.
Candidates mostly agreed that the board should set an example and request that residents wear masks and comply with guidelines.
Guerard said he takes Covid-19 seriously but would push to open businesses and says Bennington could have held its Bennington Battle Day parade this year, which was canceled to protect participants’ safety.
Harrington said residents shouldn’t be shamed for deciding against wearing a mask. She also expressed skepticism about the Covid-19 vaccine.
Hoyt, who posted a video to Facebook celebrating the town of Stamford’s attempt to end Gov. Phil Scott’s executive order that established guidelines for Covid-19, said he hasn’t yet worn a mask. He believes mandates related to Covid-19 are unconstitutional.
Bennington’s assets
Asked how to best use the character and composition of the town to improve it, most said Bennington needs a greater focus on marketing, specifically promoting the town’s proximity to outdoor recreation opportunities.
Bates said Bennington should promote the outdoors and the town’s history, and Carroll said he learned during his time as a state legislator that weddings are a major attraction in Vermont and the selectboard could market the town as a wedding destination.
Hoyt said the outdoors could be marketed more to tourists and the town should reduce taxes. Harrington emphasized marketing summertime outdoor activities, such as ATVing, hiking and biking.
Cook referred to a 2012 town report that asked residents for ideas about improving the town, and she intends to reach out to people who responded.
Corey said the sheer number of people running for office shows residents’ commitment to the town.
“We all have different opinions about the best way to do it for our town, but we’re all here stepping up, and that’s the thing that people need to know,” he said. “We all care.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the number of candidates running for Bennington selectboard. It is 10.
