State Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden, plans to announce her bid for Vermont’s lone U.S. House seat on Thursday.
According to an email obtained by VTDigger from Ram Hinsdale’s campaign to supporters, the senator has “an exciting announcement” planned for Thursday. Ram Hinsdale has been publicly considering a run for the seat for months.
In an interview with VTDigger on Wednesday afternoon, Ram Hinsdale would only say that she has “been exploring a congressional run, and I really wanted to take my time with the decision. I’ll be ready to announce my plans to Vermonters tomorrow.”
Two people familiar with Ram Hinsdale’s plan confirmed she would be joining the race.
Ram Hinsdale will join two other Democratic candidates for the seat: Lt. Gov. Molly Gray and Senate President Pro Tempore Becca Balint, D-Windham. They’re each vying for the seat soon to be vacated by U.S. Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt. U.S. Sen Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., announced in November he would not seek re-election in 2022, and Welch has since declared his candidacy for Senate.
Vermont is the only state in the nation that has never sent a woman to Washington, but that looks likely to change this year. In addition to Balint and Gray, Christina Nolan, a former U.S. Attorney for Vermont, is strongly considering a run for Leahy’s seat as a Republican. Ram Hinsdale, should she prevail, would also be the first person of color to serve in Vermont’s delegation.
At the time the youngest person ever elected to the Vermont House, Ram Hinsdale served in the chamber from 2008 to 2016. She left her seat to run in the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor but lost out to David Zuckerman, P/D-Chittenden, who ultimately won the election. She became the first woman of color elected to the Vermont Senate in 2020.
