U.S. Sen. Peter Welch didn’t vote on the state legislation that sent property taxes up by an average of nearly 14% this year, but he still gets an earful from his constituents.

“I get enormous volume of mail from Vermonters who can’t figure out how to pay their property taxes,” Welch told Vermont Public on election night. “And they write to me even though I’m in Washington and have no ability to affect that whatsoever.”

Affordability, Welch said, is the issue for Vermont voters this year.

“Every day Vermonters are wondering whether they can stay in their home if their property taxes keep going up, and they’re really apprehensive about whether they’ll be able to stay,” he said.

Those fears motivated the electorate on Tuesday in ways that Democrats weren’t fully expecting. Jason Maulucci, the campaign manager for Republican Gov. Phil Scott, said he wasn’t as surprised.

“I mean based on some polling data, conversations everywhere across the state, it was clear to us there was something brewing in the electorate this year,” Maulucci said in an interview Wednesday.

Scott’s team seized the moment. The popular governor bankrolled television, radio and print ads in which he appeared alongside Republican candidates, mostly for state Senate. When internal polling indicated that many House districts were in play as well, the campaign made the decision to invest there, too.

“A few weeks ago we realized, you know, we might have a chance here in the House, too, to make some significant gains, so we started focusing energy and resources to support House candidates as well, and it clearly paid off,” Maulucci said.

The GOP picked up 17 seats in the Vermont House of Representatives and six seats in the state Senate, a bigger net gain than any party has seen in this state in at least three decades.

Scott spent more than $450,000 from his own campaign account to fund the venture. Jim Dandeneau, executive director of the Vermont Democratic Party, agrees it was money well spent.

“I mean he’s the most popular governor in the country,” Dandeneau said. “That’s obviously a very significant factor.”

Dandeneau said Republicans also benefited from a powerful tailwind.

“You know, things are not working right in Vermont,” he said. “And a lot of folks blame Democrats in the Legislature.”

Even after Tuesday’s historic losses, Democrats still retain a comfortable majority in the House and a two-seat margin in the Senate. But they no longer enjoy the supermajority that has allowed them to unilaterally override Scott’s vetoes, and enact the sorts of expansive and often expensive policies — such as a payroll tax that funds child care subsidies — that Scott railed so hard against on the campaign trail.

Senate President Pro Tem Phil Baruth said it’s on Democrats now to interpret the message that voters have sent.

“There’s a clear result [Tuesday] that was not in our favor, so we need to listen to that,” he said. “We can’t walk away as though that didn’t happen.”

He said Tuesday’s results also up the ante for Scott. The four-term governor has blamed Democratic supermajorities in Legislature for thwarting his affordability agenda. Now that they’re no longer in place, Baruth said it’s on Scott and his fellow Republicans to deliver on their promise to bring down costs on property taxes, health care and housing.

“I think, ironically, it will be harder for them not to come forward with policy solutions given their stronger numbers,” he said.

Maulucci said the governor “is ready to embrace that pressure.”

But he said the financial relief Vermonters are clamoring for won’t arrive unless Democrats heed the mandate voters issued Tuesday, and work with Scott in ways they have not in the past.

When the Legislature reconvenes in January, neither party will be able to move major policy without support from the other, which means progress on the existential issues facing Vermont now rests — or falls — on bipartisan compromise.

This audio story was produced by Peter Engisch.

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MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-0, 0-0 B1G) will host the University of Vermont Catamounts (1-0, 0-0 America East) for the first time in program history on Friday, Nov. 8. The game can be streamed on B1G+ with Marisa Cate and Phoenix Ferrari and can be heard on KFAN+ with Tanner Hoops and Lynnette Sjoquist on the call.

Minnesota (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten) vs Vermont (1-0, 0-0 America East)
Stream: B1G+
Tip Time: 7:01 p.m. CT
Radio: KFAN+ 96.7 FM and the iHeartRadio app (Tanner Hoops and Lynnette Sjoquist)
Location: Williams Arena

Scouting the Catamounts
• Vermont comes to Dinkytown after defeating Missouri 62-46 last week in its home opener
• The win over Missouri is Vermont’s first win over an SEC school, they are now 1-11 vs the Southeastern Conference
• The Catamounts held Missouri to 12 points across the second and third quarters
• Anna Olson was selected to the America East All-Conference Team
• The Catamouns return two of their top scorers from last season in Olson (11.6 ppg) and Keira Hanson (8.1 ppg)
• 2022 America East Rookie of the Year Catherine Gilwee returns after missing all last season with an injury
• Olson hails from Monticello, Minn., and had 18 points against Missouri

I Bet You Think About Anni
• Graduate transfer Annika Stewart came off the bench and led the Gopher offense in Minnesota’s home opener
• Stewart had 18 points, four rebounds, and one steal
• The Plymouth, Minn., native tied her career high in three-pointers made with three
• Notably, her 18  points contributed to Minnesota’s 50 bench points scored

Look What You Made Me Do
• Transfer Taylor Woodson had a career night on Monday, tying three personal bests 
• The forward tied her bests in rebounds (5), offensive rebounds (4), and most field goals made (5)
• Notably, her 10 points contributed to Minnesota’s 50 bench points scored

…Ready For It?
• Junior Mara Braun opened the season with a stellar game against Central Connecticut State
• Through 24 minutes, the guard had 17 points, five assists, two steal, and one rebound

State of Grace
• Sophomore Grace Grocholski had her 37th career start on Monday
• The North Prairie, Wis., native competed for 26 minutes, tying her career high in steals (3), and scoring three field goals.

Award Watch
Junior Guard Mara Braun was named to the 20-player watch list for the 2025 Ann Meyers-Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Award, as announced by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame last Tuesday. Named after the first player, male or female, selected to an All-America Team in four straight college seasons, the annual award in its eighth year recognizes the top shooting guard in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates for North Tartan. On her AAU team, Mckinney averaged 11.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals. For the Skippers, McKinney played at the varsity level at Minnetonka since her seventh-grade year.

New Kids on the Block
Minnesota’s roster features two true freshmen in McKenna Johnson and Tori McKinney. Johnson hails from Wilmot, Wis., and was an early enrollee last season and did not see any game action. In high school, Johnson was a No. 60 ranked in the top 100 ESPN rankings. During her final high school season, the 5-9 guard averaged 26.1 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per contest. She competed for the Wisconsin Flight Elite program, where she helped lead them to the EYBL Final Four in 2023. 

A Minnetonka, Minn., native, McKinney joins the ‘U’ after a prep career playing for North Tartan. On her AAU team, Mckinney averaged 11.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals. For the Skippers, McKinney played at the varsity level at Minnetonka since her seventh-grade year.

Tactful Transfers
• Graduate Alexsia Rose joins Minnesota after playing her senior season at UMass. With the Minutemen, Rose averaged 3.1 points per game, 1.5 rebounds per game and 1.5 assists per game.
• Minnesota native Taylor Woodson was added to the Gophers’ squad after competing at Michigan during her freshman season. For the Wolverines, Woodson played in 32 games and averaged 8.9 minutes, 1.9 points, and 1.7 rebounds.
• After four seasons at Nebraska, Annika Stewart will compete for the Gophers during her graduate season. With the Huskers, she played in 111 games and scored 572 points and snagged 268 rebounds. She also excelled in the classroom, as a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and a 2023 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar.
• Hailing from Apple Valley, Calif., Jordan Brooks comes to Minnesota after spending one season at CSU Bakersfield after playing at Victory Valley College.

Vermont State Police have closed an investigation into an incident that prompted the suspension of Woodstock Police Chief Joseph Swanson, with no criminal charges being brought.

Adam Silverman, a state police spokesperson, stated in an email Tuesday to VTDigger that “VSP was unable to move forward with the case due to the reported victim’s declining to cooperate with the investigation.”

Silverman added, “As a result, there was no review by the prosecutor’s office.”

Swanson was placed on paid administrative leave from his post as Woodstock’s police chief on Oct. 15 “as a precaution following a report of his alleged involvement in an incident” on Oct. 13, Woodstock Municipal Manager Eric Duffy stated in a press release last month. 

Duffy at that time would not comment regarding the nature of that incident nor on Swanson’s “alleged involvement” in it. Duffy said the matter had been referred to the state police to conduct an investigation.

Swanson’s attorney, William Vasiliou of Langrock, Sperry and Wool, emailed a statement to VTDigger on Thursday morning concerning his client. 

“Chief Swanson is glad that the investigation into the incident that occurred on High Street earlier this month is closed,” the statement read. “Chief Swanson wants the community to know that he fully cooperated with the investigation by VSP, and at no time was he suspected of committing any unlawful act.”

The statement added that Swanson was a witness to the incident and “acted to deescalate a situation that an unnamed person initiated during a minor traffic jam.”

As for job status as police chief, according to the statement, “(Swanson) looks forward to putting this matter behind him, and we expect that he will return to work in the very near future.”

VTDigger submitted a public records request on Oct. 18 to the town of Woodstock seeking information related to the incident.

However, late last week, through attorney Matthew Bloomer, the town withheld most of the material related to the matter. Some documents were provided but were so heavily redacted that the nature of the allegations that prompted an investigation could not be discerned. 

Bloomer largely cited the then-ongoing state police investigation and the possibility that providing the material to VTDigger could impede that probe as reasons for withholding and redacting the information.

VTDigger renewed its request for the materials earlier this week after state police confirmed the probe had been closed. As of noon Thursday, the town had not provided any further information, nor did Duffy respond to a question about Swanson’s current job status.

Swanson became Woodstock’s police chief in July 2023 after having worked for the law enforcement agency for many years since first joining the force as a part-time officer in 2000.

Woodstock Police Sgt. Christopher O’Keefe has been serving as acting Woodstock police since Swanson was placed on paid administrative leave last month.