[A] long list of Mad River Valley residents have submitted their names as candidates to fill the Washington-7 House district seat.
Gov. Phil Scott will choose among 13 candidates to fill the seat left open July 10 by the resignation of Rep. Adam Greshin, I-Warren. Scott appointed Greshin as commissioner of the Department of Finance and Management.
This marks the fourth legislative appointment for Scott, according to Rebecca Kelley, his director of communications.
Kelley said Scott doesn’t have a firm timeline for choosing Greshin’s replacement but hopes to get it done as soon as possible.
“We will be looking to go through the process relatively quickly so that the individuals in (the) district have representation, even over the summer,” Kelley said. “He’ll be giving everybody a fair review and wants to ensure that all the steps are taken to find the best possible candidate.”
The 13 candidates are:
- Rebecca Baruzzi, Fayston. Founder of Mad River Guides tour company and legislative staffer for the House Committee on Corrections and Institutions.
- Eugene Bifano, Warren. Constable in Warren since 2010 and former mayor of Briarcliff Manor, New York.
- Anne Bordonaro, Waitsfield. Former administrator in the Agency of Education and current member of the Waitsfield Selectboard.
- Logan Cooke, Waitsfield. Member of the Waitsfield Selectboard and an information technology specialist for the state.
- Kari Dolan, Waitsfield. Manager of the Vermont Clean Water Initiative Program at the Agency of Natural Resources and a member of the Waitsfield Selectboard.
- Marie Leotta, Waitsfield. Retired from the electronics industry. She won 15.1 percent of the vote in the 2016 Washington-7 District election as a Republican.
- Dayna Lisaius, Warren. Warren town treasurer and co-owner of and business manager for Theater X Productions.
- Lisa Loomis, Waitsfield. Editor and co-owner of The Valley Reporter, where she began working in 1985.
- Gloria Rapalee, Duxbury. Scientist and consulting forester, and volunteer tree farm inspector.
- Ed Read, Fayston. Owner of Mad River Property Management and Mad River Garden Center and a member of the Fayston Selectboard.
- Asah Rowles, Warren. Marketing director and events coordinator at The Big Picture Theater and Cafe in Waitsfield and chair of the Irene recovery board for the Mad River Valley.
- Jake Sallerson, Warren. He does forest maintenance for the Trapp family in Stowe and won 11 percent of the vote as an independent for the Washington-7 seat in 2016.
- Salvatore Spinosa, Waitsfield. Environmental lawyer and ran as an independent in 2012 for the Washington-7 seat but was not elected.
