Updated Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 12:05 p.m.
Election night in Vermont confirmed two widely anticipated historic milestones. Voters elected Democrat Becca Balint to become the first woman to represent the state in Congress — and they overwhelmingly approved a measure to enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution, making Vermont the first state in the nation to do so.
Elsewhere on the ballot, though, Vermonters largely voted to uphold the status quo. The state’s next U.S. senator is a familiar face: eight-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Peter Welch. Republican Gov. Phil Scott resoundingly won a fourth term, and former lieutenant governor David Zuckerman, a Progressive/Democrat, is set to return to his old office. Democrats easily secured open statewide posts for attorney general, secretary of state and state treasurer.
Legislative races saw few upsets, but Democrats appear to have gained enough ground to cross a crucial threshold. With Progressives, they are set to hold solid supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature — giving them enough votes to override potential vetoes that Scott may issue during his next term.
VTDigger’s 2022 election coverage will continue with more results and analysis. Check back frequently for updates.
— Mike Dougherty
US Senate
U.S. Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., has been elected to succeed longtime U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., whose term concludes in January. Welch defeated Republican first-time candidate Gerald Malloy 68% to 28%.
US House
Voters elected Democrat Becca Balint to become the first woman to represent Vermont in the U.S. Congress. Balint, the president pro tempore of the state Senate, defeated Liam Madden, a self-described independent who was running on the Republican ticket, 63% to 28%.
Governor
Gov. Phil Scott has once again cruised to an easy reelection for a fourth term in office, beating his Democratic opponent, activist and policy advocate Brenda Siegel, 71% to 24%.
Lieutenant governor
Progressive/Democrat David Zuckerman has won the race for Vermont lieutenant governor, setting up his second stint in the office come January. Zuckerman defeated his chief opponent, Sen. Joe Benning, R-Caledonia, 54% to 43%, according to complete but uncertified results released Wednesday by the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office.
Attorney general
Charity Clark defeated first-time Republican candidate Mike Tagliavia to become the first woman elected attorney general in Vermont.
Secretary of state
Rep. Sarah Copeland Hanzas, D-Bradford, is set to become Vermont’s next secretary of state after defeating perennial Republican candidate H. Brooke Paige.
State treasurer
Mike Pieciak, the state’s former top banking and insurance watchdog, has been elected as Vermont’s next state treasurer. He will be the first openly LGBTQ+ person to lead the office, which oversees the state’s investments, manages its debt and cash flow, issues bonds and administers three public pension systems.
Auditor of accounts
Democrat/Progressive incumbent Doug Hoffer, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, easily secured his sixth term as state auditor. Hoffer was challenged by Republican Rick Morton of Brattleboro.
Proposal 2
Vermonters on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to explicitly prohibit slavery and indentured servitude in the state constitution.
Proposal 5
Vermont has become the first state to enshrine abortion rights in its constitution after voters passed Proposal 5, also known as Article 22, which guarantees a right to "personal reproductive autonomy."
Vermont Senate
As Vermonters took to the polls Tuesday to elect a new state Senate, Democrats and Progressives sought to maintain their veto-proof majority in the upper chamber. Early results suggested they were successful.
Vermont House
Democrats and Progressives have regained a two-thirds supermajority in the state House of Representatives. As of Wednesday morning, with all but one precinct reporting, Democrats and Progressives had secured a combined 108 seats out of 150.
Burlington bond measure
Voters in Burlington approved a $165 million bond measure on Tuesday by a large margin, allowing construction of a new high school to begin.
Scenes from the polls
Read dispatches from Brattleboro, Newfane, Berlin, Pownal, Hinesburg, Burlington, Bennington, Williamstown and Hartford on our Election Day liveblog.
Early voting tallied
As of Tuesday morning, a total of 171,581 early ballots had been received by town and city clerks across the state. That’s more than half of the total votes cast during the last midterm election in 2018.
Clarification: The vote percentages on this page have been updated to exclude blank votes and spoiled ballots.
