Updated below with news that former Vermont Democratic Party chairman Jake Perkinson and Rep. Kesha Ram (D-Burlington) have dropped out and endorsed Sirotkin. Rep. Tim Jerman (D-Essex Junction), meanwhile, says he will stay in the race. Gov. Shumlin says he’s “thrilled” Sirotkin is interested.
In a move likely to upend the contest to fill a Chittenden County state senate seat opened up by the death of Sally Fox, her husband of 36 years says he’s interested in succeeding her.
Michael Sirotkin, a longtime lobbyist and well-known figure in Montpelier, wrote Chittenden County Democratic Party chairman David Scherr late Tuesday to raise the possibility.
“Please accept this letter as an indication of my interest in being appointed to Sally’s Senate seat,” Sirotkin wrote. “Sally had months ago expressed an interest in my doing so, although clearly our first preference was always that the choice would never present itself. After much soul searching and encouragement from others, I decided I would welcome the opportunity if given such honor by your Committee and the Governor.”
Sirotkin’s decision comes just hours before an 80-member committee of Chittenden County Democrats is set to winnow the field to three candidates, whose names will be forwarded to Gov. Peter Shumlin. The governor is free to appoint a replacement from that list, or he can select his own candidate.
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I almost feel sorry for our governor: no matter who he picks he’s going to have several angry power players on his bench.
I don’t see how anyone in good conscience can appoint the partner of a major and influential Lobbying firm to a seat in the Senate. 30 Years of lobbying says he is going to be looking through the eyes of his business as opposed to his constituents. I mean think of the money the firm can charge it’s clients.
And why Serotkin thinks this is plausible indicates his lack of moral insight into what an elected official should and should be. Also clearly Ram and Perkinson …
But that means Shumlin will almost assuredly appoint him, and his clients will obviously pony up the max amount in donations to Shumlin’s reelection fund.
As someone who lives in the district….we don’t need another lobbyist in the legislature….the sad part is the former Senator should have never run re-election when she couldn’t actively run….and now her husband wants to get on the dole…..we need ethics remove in Vermont.
Everybody says that they care about the poor, not enough to actually appoint one to something important, but they care.
I’ve known mike for more than 29 years. He wears the whitest of lobbyist hats and his talents will make him one of the best senators ever for Vermont.
As someone else who lives in the county (House members run in districts, Senators run in counties), I am extremely grateful to Sally Fox for running for re-election in 2012. She campaigned hard and could be seen regularly doing honk and waves, walking in parades, and generally engaging with voters. I don’t really know what “actively run” means to you.
More importantly, she spent the last year working hard in the Senate for the causes that were most important to her, which, as many have pointed out, support Vermonters who do not usually have someone speaking up for them in the state house.
I think it’s less important that her husband is a lobbyist than what he represents. With a citizen legislature, we will always have those representing us who have “other interests” as well. The real question to me is are those interests in line with my interests? For Michael, I can just look at his lobbying record and I know that the answer is definitely yes.
You are so right!
Real sad that another Vermonter doesn’t get it…..let’s see how open he his with his lobbyist buddies! We need ethics reform in Vermont.