The Vermont Democratic Party is advertising for a full-time staffer to boost its candidates’ chances in Burlington City Council races this March.
It’s the first time the Vermont Dems have hired a field director to focus on Queen City council races, party spokesperson Christopher Di Mezzo said.
“Time and time again, the state party maybe hasn’t tried, maybe hasn’t fielded a staff member devoted specifically to this mission, and we’re changing that,” Di Mezzo said. “We hope the resources we’re investing in the community in Burlington will bring about Democratic leadership that will support a Democratic agenda in Vermont’s largest city.”
All eight ward seats are up for reelection on Town Meeting Day this year, including those held by incumbent Democrats Chip Mason (Ward 5) and Karen Paul (Ward 6), and Democrat/Progressive Ali Dieng (Ward 7).
The city is led by a Democratic mayor, Miro Weinberger, who is up for reelection in 2021. The council is made up of four Democrats, four Progressives, two independents, one Republican and one Dem/Prog.
Already, this election cycle is shaping up to be historic: For the first time in 32 years, independent incumbent Sharon Bushor lost the Progressive endorsement at the party’s caucus Wednesday night. And the council’s only Republican, Council President Kurt Wright (Ward 4), announced Thursday morning that he won’t seek another term.
The City Democratic Committee of Burlington has not yet announced any candidates to take on the nearly full slate of Prog-endorsed hopefuls in 2020. The field director will ideally be on the ground before the Dems caucus on January 7, Di Mezzo said.
The Burlington staffer will be the state Dems’ only active field director before Town Meeting Day. The party will hire more after March to gear up for the November 2020 general election, Di Mezzo said.
The Vermont Democratic Party rarely invests such resources in city council races. It hasn’t taken a noticeable role since 2015, when it assisted would-be city councilors with phone banking and canvassing. At the time, party officials downplayed their role, but then-city councilor Dave Hartnett partially attributed his losing the Democratic endorsement that year to the party’s increased presence.
“It was a huge effort on the part of the Democratic party to win some seats on the council,” he told Seven Days then, noting that at the council level, “This is the first time I’ve witnessed this.”
Even then, the state party didn’t make any monetary contributions to individual council campaigns and hasn’t any year since, according to campaign finance records on the Vermont Secretary of State database. Di Mezzo said the party is more likely to offer candidates occasional trainings than monetary support.
“We’re in a strong position statewide and locally,” Di Mezzo said. “We are going to flex the muscle we have, and in this case, it’s putting time, energy and resources to the city council of Burlington.”
The state Dems have endured a tough year. The party’s executive director resigned in April after just months on the job. And director of party operations Brandon Batham was forced out in July after staffers discovered he’d allegedly embezzled about $18,500 from party coffers. Turnover has plagued the party’s ranks over the last few years.
Vermont Progressive Party executive director Josh Wronski thinks the Dems are worried about losing ground in Burlington. He’d never heard of the Vermont Dems hiring a field director for council elections and couldn’t recall a time since 2015 when the state party got so involved.
“Frankly, it’s kind of a point of pride that they’re feeling so nervous about Burlington that they feel they actually have to hire staff,” Wronski said.
Rather, Di Mezzo said, the Dems think they can win.
“This is an opportunity for Democrats to make some gains,” he said.
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Anyone who lived through the Kiss administration should be very concerned about Prog control in Burlington. Good for the Dems organization for stepping up.
Even tho Kurt Wright has decided not to run there still is a Republican on City Council: Joan Shannon.
It’s not that I mind a staffer just for Burlington, it’s that I wish the rest of the state would be equally supported. And that events were held throughout the state and not just primarily in its Northwestern corner. Jill MIchaels
Am I misreading this? Or is the Democratic Party finally growing a backbone stronger than a strand of linguine and finally Separating themselves from the progressive party?
As a conservative Democrat, they have a long way to go before I would consider voting for a Democrat in the next election.
A good start would be to start separating themselves from Zuckerman and Tim Ashe.
Money would be better spent hiring a staff person to, among other things, monitor compliance with council resolutions.
I learned by tracking the parade mural resolutions (crafted by Dems) that resolutions can be insincere political cover for bad decisions, window dressing delivered to City depts with a wink. Otherwise, if council doesn’t monitor compliance with resolutions, their work is but a stage show.
The City Hall machine represents less of the interests of ordinary people and more of corporate developers. Until the Democratic party in Burlington gets its independent local sense of enpowering people back again, I look forward to more seats going to Progressive endorsed candidates. And Ward 4 is changing to a more diverse community and also very happy Wright will become a private citizen and leave the political representation to someone who can operate with transparency like Carpenter. I hope to wake up the day after Town meeting 2020 and see a veto proof city council.
ALERT ALERT
Apparently this article is really about the ongoing injustice of the parade mural!!!
ALERT ALERT
Apparently, knowyourassumptions is quacking like a duck, just to get attention.
No, Joan Shannon is a not a Republican, she’s a moderate/liberal Democrat. She is not a Republican just because you declare it to be so. By your logic we can declare you to be a Communist.
In my opinion this should never be about party politics. The people are elected to represent all regardless of party. But that doesn’t seem to be when you see votes across the party. We seem to have lost the meaning of the words of Abraham Lincoln from the Gettysburg address “and that government of the people, by the people, for the people…”.