VTDigger journalists are fanning out across the state today to talk to voters and follow races up and down the ticket. If you have questions or thoughts for our reporters and editors, send an email to cmeyn@vtdigger.org. If you’re still not sure who to vote for, check out VTDigger’s Voter Guide with candidate bios and all our election coverage.
Voter turnout hits about 55 percent
Voter turnout was high for a mid-term, but not quite as high as some town clerks and poll workers had predicted.
Turnout was at about 55 percent with 193 out of 275 precincts reporting, more than 10 points higher than in 2014, when turnout was about 44 percent.
VTDigger reporters talked to a number of poll workers Tuesday who said voting lines were as long and steady as they would be in a presidential election year. The 2016 election say 68 percent of voters come out, just below the record 72 percent in 2008.
Kurt Wright loses in Burlington
Republican House Rep. Kurt Wright won’t be returning to the House.
A cross-party endorsement from Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger wasn’t enough to save Wright, who was up against Democrats Carol Ode, an incumbent, and Bob Hooper.
It was close. Wright won 28.7 percent of the votes in Chittenden 6-1 compared to Hooper’s 30.61 percent — 166 votes separated the two.
Heidi Scheuermann holds on in Stowe
In one of the most closely watched House races in the state, Republican Heidi Scheuermann narrowly beat out Marina Meerburg by vote of 1,366 to 1,280.
It’s one of the rare close races that the GOP has held on to so far, as the Democrats have flipped a seat each in Windham, Rutland and Washington.
9:01 p.m. (Dave Gram)
Scott leads in early returns
Incumbent Republican Gov. Phil Scott jumped out to a big lead in early vote-counting Tuesday, as results for many of the state’s small towns were reported. But Burlington and other Democratic strongholds had yet to report.
Nearly two hours after polls closed at 7 p.m., Scott held a commanding lead of about 60 percent to 36 percent for Hallquist, a former utility executive running for statewide office for the first time.
While Hallquist had talked up her successful career as CEO of the Vermont Electric Cooperative during the campaign, she appeared to be losing badly in the co-op’s northern Vermont territory. She lost her hometown of Hyde Park by about the same margin she was trailing statewide, 60 percent to 37 percent.
Montpelier approves non-citizen voting
Montpelier voted to allow non-citizen residents to vote, becoming the first municipality in the state to make the move. It needs to be approved by the Legislature to move forward.
The capital city also approved a $10 million parking garage behind the Capitol Plaza hotel. Outside City Hall on Tuesday, and on Front Porch Forum, the parking garage was the hottest issue on the ballot by far.
Non-citizen voting was approved 2,857 votes to 1,488. The parking garage got 2,459 yes votes and 1,877 nos.
Paul Poirier loses House seat in Barre
Paul Poirier, a longtime Barre rep who ran for US House as a Democrat in 1988, has lost his seat. He was running as an independent.
Democrats Tommy Walz and Peter Anthony will be representing the Washington 3 district. Poirier has grown apart from the Democratic party, which campaigned hard against him in this campaign.
He blew up at Democratic Party political director Brandon Batham during a recent Barre City Council meeting, according to a Time Argus report.
Dems pick up a House seat in Rutland
In their quest for a supermajority in the House, Democrats have flipped their first seat of the election. William Notte, a Democrat, beat out Beth Fleck, a Republican by vote of 785 to 532 in Rutland 5-4.
Notte, a member of the Rutland City board of alderman, takes the seat of Doug Gage, a Republican who did not seek re-election.
Democrats need to flip 8 to 10 seats in the House — and count on the support of Progressives and a half dozen independents — to give themselves a shot to override governor’s vetoes in the next two years.
AP calls it for Bernie
It took one minute after polls closed in Vermont for both CNN and the AP to call Vermont’s US Senate race for Bernie Sanders, the independent incumbent.
BREAKING: Independent Bernie Sanders wins re-election to U.S. Senate in Vermont. #APracecall at 7:00 p.m. EST. @AP election coverage: https://t.co/Aqak5eOVEp #Election2018 #VTelection
— AP Politics (@AP_Politics) November 7, 2018
It was one of the first calls in the country for AP, which is doing exit polling in Vermont, meaning it may be able to call the more closely contests governor’s race before official results are in.
Sanders participated in two debates at the end of October with his seven fellow candidates for the seat.
7:01 p.m. (Colin Meyn)
Listening and watching options
VTDigger will be delivering results straight to the live map on our home page starting in a few minutes, but we don’t expect anyone to be calling races for an hour or two (could be sooner, who knows!). So you’ll probably need something else to do.
Our recommendations: Channel 17 will have opposing viewpoints going at it through the evening to digest the latest updates in bipartisan fashion. Kevin Ellis, a longtime lobbyist in Montpelier (the liberal) and Brady Toensing, an attorney and vice chair of the Vermont GOP (the conservative) will talk things out.
You can watch it here starting at 7:30, but until then here’s an election preview from our pals at Channel 17.
And WDEV Radio will be bringing listeners results from across the state and across the country. Dave Gram, host of the Dave Gram Show, is broadcasting from VTDigger’s Montpelier office.
Digger reporters at the Democrat and Republican election parties will also be calling in with updates. Listen to the livestream or find the station in your area here.
6:22 p.m. (Kevin O’Connor)
Universal healthcare is the ‘it’ issue
After talking to voters in seven towns and cities across the state, the issue driving people to the polls was whatever issue hit closest to home — elderly care for elderly folks, dairy farm support for dairy farmers, etc. That and President Donald Trump.
But as the sun finally came out in Middlebury, something of a trend seemed to emerge. The issue coming up most often was healthcare costs, and particularly how they never seem to stop rising.
Jill Charboneau, the head of the AFL-CIO in Vermont, said she cared deeply about other issues — such as an increase to the minimum wage — but thought universal primary healthcare was the most important thing lawmakers could get to work on when they head to Montpelier in a couple months.
“It’s the most important economic thing we can do,” she said. “Many people can’t afford to go to the doctor even if they make $25 an hour.”
Creating a single payer plan in Vermont was a defining issue of former Gov. Peter Shumlin and the Democratic Legislature during his term, but they failed to make it happen.
Gov. Phil Scott says he supports the idea, but believes it needs to happen on a national or regional level. Christine Hallquist, his Democratic challenger, says she is open to creating a single payer system in Vermont, but thinks being part of a regional solution would be more realistic.
4:52 p.m. (Aidan Quigley)
Burlington wards are split on the high school bond
While Burlington voters appear poised to support a $30 million bond to upgrade the city’s wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, the vote on the $70 million high school renovation bond looks to be much closer.
Conversations with voters in the city’s Ward 5, which covers the South End, painted a positive picture for the high school renovation bond. But more voters in Ward 4, in the city’s traditionally conservative New North End, said they voted against it than for it.
The $70 million high school bond would significantly renovate the school, addressing deferred maintenance, accessibility issues for students with disabilities and providing an overall upgrade to the facility.
Brittney Sherman, 29, who lives in the city’s South End, voted for the bond.
“I went to Burlington High School and it definitely needs to be updated,” she said.
Other voters, however, expressed concerns about the cost of the project and the tax increase it will bring.
Virginia Couture, 70, who lives in the New North End, said that financial issues were her top issue in voting and voted against the high school bond.
“It’s too much money with little explanation,” she said. “Every year its money, money, money, and where does it go?”
While the New North End has been less likely to support school budgets and bonds in the past than the rest of the city, it’s looking like the high school renovation bond could be close.
3:45 p.m. (Mike Dougherty)
Scott and Hallquist hit the polls
Gov. Phil Scott and his Democratic challenger Christine Hallquist both hit their home polling places today: Scott talked to voters after casting his ballot in Berlin, and Hallquist voted this morning in Hyde Park. “What a surreal feeling to see your own name on a ballot,” Hallquist tweeted afterwards.
Read more about Scott’s re-election strategy and the last days of the Hallquist campaign. Photos by Glenn Russell for VTDigger.
2:55 p.m. (Mike Dougherty)
Getting ready for returns? Bookmark our live results page
VTDigger’s new election results page is going live. During past elections, we’ve brought you live numbers as soon as poll workers submit their tallies. This year, especially after learning that many print newspapers won’t publish results on Wednesday morning, we’re doubling down on delivering accurate results in an easy-to-navigate interface.
Elections.vtdigger.org will show real-time data from the Vermont Secretary of State’s office, which gets numbers directly from polling places. Plus, our page will auto-reload every five minutes, so there’s no need to refresh your browser. Start exploring now, and get ready for results after polls close at 7 p.m.
1:35 p.m. (Mike Dougherty)
Glenn Russell sees polling places packed
Photographer Glenn Russell says that despite this morning’s “gray, grim and gross” weather, he saw a steady stream of voters crowding rural polling places in Hyde Park, Elmore and Worcester. Russell, who’s been photographing Vermont elections for over 25 years, said turnout looked stronger than a typical midterm year. Click through to see scenes from this morning’s voting.
12:55 p.m. (Mike Dougherty)
Parking tops people at the Montpelier polls
While Montpelier voters are choosing from a full slate of state and local candidates today, the most electioneering outside City Hall this morning concerned a contentious ballot measure about the capital city’s proposed parking garage project.
Les Blomberg, who encouraged voters to oppose Article 1, said it was the number one issue he’d heard about all morning.
The question asks whether voters will approve a $10.5 million, 30-year bond for the project, which will use Tax Increment Financing to secure 160 public parking spaces in the proposed structure.
Laura Gebhart, executive director of the Montpelier Development Corp., stood under an umbrella in front of City Hall, encouraging citizens to vote Yes. She said over thirty downtown businesses have declared their support for the project, which would alleviate longstanding concerns over parking availability downtown.
Blomberg told voters that a riverfront parking structure didn’t fit the city’s brand, and that the cost per parking space wasn’t a good deal for taxpayers. But, he said, it’s been difficult to sway voters who’ve already made up their minds. The garage has been debated for weeks in editorials and on Front Porch Forum, and groups for and against the project have paid for ads in local newspapers.
“No one believes each other’s numbers,” he said.
Montpelier Mayor Anne Watson has been vocal about her support for the project. Watson has pointed out that the land in question would be donated by Fred Bashara, who plans to build a Hampton Inn alongside the garage. At a city council meeting last week, she told citizens, “This is not our land to play with.”
12:10 a.m. (Kevin O’Connor)
Rolling on to Randolph
Third stop Randolph and there doesn’t seem to be a defining state issue that is motivating voters to turn out this year.
There are plenty of divisive issues — a regulated marijuana market, paid family leave and a $15 minimum wage — but nothing like the civil union fight more than a decade ago, or the wind development and single payer battles more recently.
If there’s one thing uniting people it’s the cost of healthcare. A 49-year-old man here said he thinks the focus on taxes when talking about affordability is misplaced; he’s paying far more for healthcare.
But the theme of the day is frustration with President Donald Trump.
“I wish we could vote Trump out” said an older guy in the voting line in Randolph.
“Agreed. High five me,” said a younger woman behind him. And they did.
11:50 a.m. (Alan Keays)
Feeling energized in Stowe
Folks in Stowe are heading to the polls in droves, or at least in much higher numbers than the last mid-terms in 2014.
Town Clerk Lisa Walker said turnout was much higher than usual and she estimated more than 50 percent of registered voters to cast ballots. Officials are expecting similar turnout across the state, and an energized electorate across the country.
The town had about 1,200 voters cast ballots ahead of election day, and had more than 500 votes cast on Tuesday by 10 a.m., Walker said.
For comparison, in the 2016 general election, a presidential election year, about 1,100 people voted early, and in the last midterm election in 2014 about 400 people voted early, she said.
“Its been a very steady stream since 7 this morning, and we had people waiting outside,” Walker added Tuesday.
Voters in Stowe will decide one of the most closely watched House races in the state. Democrat Marina Meerburg is taking on longtime incumbent Republican Heidi Scheuermann.
9:45 a.m. (Colin Meyn)
VTDigger hits the road
VTDigger reporter Kevin O’Connor is moving across the state to find out what’s bringing people to the polls. He started in Brattleboro at 7 a.m. and will make his way to Springfield, Randolph, Montpelier, Burlington, Middlebury and finish out the day in Rutland. We’ll be checking in throughout the day.
What’s he been hearing at the first two stops in Brattleboro and Springfield?
People are energized by what’s going on in Washington D.C. He’s hearing almost nothing about local races.
A 23-year-old woman in Springfield said she doesn’t usually vote in mid-terms, but brought her newborn and 3-year-old to the polls because she doesn’t like the way things are going in national politics.
Rep. Alice Emmons, D-Springfield, said she’s been hearing the same thing. Among other things, the Trump effect is sucking the oxygen out of state politics, she noted.
While the two members of Vermont’s congressional delegation on the ballot this year — Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch — have little reason to be concerned, a “blue wave” at Vermont’s polls today could give Democrat Christine Hallquist a boost in the governor’s race, and bolster the party’s chance at a supermajority in the Vermont House.
Next stop, Randolph.
