Vermont

Vermont’s biggest Election Day winner? Phil Scott. – VTDigger

Published

2 weeks ago

November 8, 2024

Vermont’s biggest Election Day winner? Phil Scott. – VTDigger

Gov. Phil Scott and his wife, Diana McTeague Scott, speak with attendees of the governor’s election watch event at the Associated General Contractors of Vermont building in Montpelier on Tuesday. Photo by Josh Kuckens/VTDigger

Vermont’s biggest election night winner was, by all accounts, Gov. Phil Scott.

The Berlin Republican was widely expected to cruise to a fifth two-year term — and cruise, he did. Scott won 71.6% of the gubernatorial vote on Tuesday, besting his Democratic challenger, South Burlington education consultant Esther Charlestin, by a more than 50-point margin.

That’s a new record for Scott, who has increased his margin of victory every two years since he was first elected in 2016. In 2022, he beat Democratic challenger and housing activist Brenda Siegel by 47 points.

Scott also exceeded his previous record for the greatest number of votes received: 266,438 this year, according to uncertified election results from the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office, compared to his previous record of 248,412 in 2020. Once again, he won at least a plurality of the gubernatorial vote in every Vermont municipality.

But Scott’s electoral success Tuesday night was not limited to his own contest. He also ushered a new class of down-ballot Republican allies into the Vermont Statehouse.

Frequently at odds with a Democratic supermajority in the House and Senate this past biennium, Scott hit the campaign trail this summer and fall to make the case to Vermont voters: For his agenda to succeed, they had to elect Republican allies to the Legislature.

“The governor made it clear right out of the gate that this campaign wasn’t about him. It was about the issues that he cares about, that we know Vermonters care about most: affordability, housing and public safety,” Scott’s campaign manager, Jason Maulucci, said after the election. “What we tried to do right from the get-go was convince voters that if they shared those priorities — which we were confident they did — it wasn’t enough just to vote for the governor. They needed to deliver him a more moderate and balanced Legislature.”

Gov. Phil Scott easily wins reelection to a 5th term — and breaks the Democratic supermajority in the Legislature

It worked. On Tuesday, Republicans exceeded even their own highest expectations, flipping six of the Senate’s 30 seats from blue to red. They also flipped a net 17 House seats.

“We were overwhelmed by the response,” Maulucci said. Voters, he continued, “delivered to the governor his asks, and then some.”

Additionally, Vermonters made the rare move to oust a statewide incumbent. By a 1.6% margin, they elected Republican John Rodgers, a former Democratic state senator from Glover whom Scott had endorsed, over incumbent Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman, a Progressive/Democrat.

Rodgers largely worked from the same playbook as Scott, campaigning on affordability for average Vermonters. He was boosted — both in campaign appearances and with generous amounts of campaign cash — by Scott, who urged Vermonters to deliver him an ally in the Lieutenant Governor’s Office.

Again, it worked. When all was said and done, all but one down-ballot Republican Scott endorsed won on Tuesday.

“I think tonight’s success rests heavily on the shoulders of Gov. Scott and his willingness to spend political capital that he’s been building up for over a decade in a way that has been more generous than we’ve ever seen him before,” Paul Dame, the chair of the Vermont Republican Party, said Tuesday night.

From Scott’s election night party in Montpelier on Tuesday — even before the extent of Republicans’ success was fully realized — Dame said, “I don’t think we’ve had a night this good in 10 years.”

“In 2014, there was a backlash against a Democratic near-supermajority that pushed too far on single payer health without talking about the cost,” he said. “And I think we saw that mirrored almost identically in the clean heat standard, and we added on top of that property taxes.”

On the campaign trail, Scott and his endorsees hammered hard on Democrats for legislation like the clean heat standard, which Republicans said could raise heating bills for Vermonters, should it be fully enacted in 2025. And for this year’s ballooning property tax bills, Scott rested the blame on Democratic legislators for failing to rein in education spending.

Democrats pushed back on the governor’s rhetoric for months, saying this year’s annual yield bill — which raised property taxes statewide by an average rate of 13.8% — was must-pass legislation. To rewrite Vermont’s education funding structure would take more than one year, they argued. And as the governor railed against Democrats for failing to bring down tax rates, Democratic leaders asked of the governor: Where was his plan?

On Tuesday night, though, it became clear that Scott’s messaging prevailed, not theirs. David Glidden, the chair of the Vermont Democratic Party, said in an interview Wednesday that Scott “was very tightly on campaign messaging the entire time” when it came to talking about affordability.

While door-knocking around the state, Democrats found Vermont voters were still eager to talk about policies pertaining to the environment and reproductive health care, Glidden said. But on the top issue of affordability, he said, Democratic candidates failed to articulate an effective counterpunch to Scott’s rhetoric.

“The governor was really only ever hammering away at property taxes, and we didn’t have a strong counterpoint to that, which I think was one weakness,” Glidden said. “In the media environment, that one singular response from Democrats was never quite articulated.”

Addressing his staffers and political allies from the Associated General Contractors of Vermont’s warehouse in Montpelier Tuesday night, Scott delivered a victory speech that celebrated Republicans’ down-ballot success even more than his own personal victory.

“Vermonters voted and sent a clear message,” he said. “They voted for balance. They voted for moderation.”

They also voted, up and down the ballot, for Scott.

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Vermont

Killington Women’s World Cup skiing returns to Vermont: 2 skiers with Western Mass ties to compete

Published

8 hours ago

November 23, 2024

Press Room

Killington Women’s World Cup skiing returns to Vermont: 2 skiers with Western Mass ties to compete

This is a biweekly column about all things skiing and snowboarding in New England.

Since the FIS Women’s World Cup ski racing returned to the Northeast eight years ago, American Mikaela Shiffrin has dominated the slalom, winning six of the seven races and earning two bronze medals in the giant slalom.

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Vermont

VT wins big in USA Today’s 10 best ski and snowboard awards. Here’s a full list of winners

Published

16 hours ago

November 23, 2024

Press Room

VT wins big in USA Today’s 10 best ski and snowboard awards. Here’s a full list of winners

Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe opens for the season

Skiers and snowboarders flock to Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe on opening day 2024.

Planning a winter ski trip? Consider heading to the mountains of Vermont.

USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards just released its best of ski and snowboard rankings, and Vermont won a total of 11 awards. The annual 10Best awards highlight the best in travel, food and lifestyle, and winners are chosen by a public voting poll after being nominated by industry experts. This year’s best of ski and snowboard awards ranks lodgings, locations and services for the winter sports across the United States.

In addition to Stowe placing as the third best ski town in the country, Vermont ski accommodations placed in the following categories: best apres-ski bar, best ski restaurant, best ski shop, best place for snow tubing, best cross-country ski resort and best ski hotel.

Here’s what to know about the winners:

The Belfry

Housed in a former one-room schoolhouse, The Belfry is a charming pub just minutes away from Jay Peak Resort. Between a robust beer and wine selection and a menu full of pub classics like wings and burgers, The Belfry is the perfect place to grab a drink after a day of skiing – earning the sixth spot on the list of apres-ski bars.

The Belfry is open for thirsty skiiers every day except Wednesday, with hours from 4-9 p.m. on Friday-Saturday and 4-8 p.m. every other day.

Award: No. 6 in Best Apres-Ski Bar

Location: 14 Amidon Road, Montgomery Center, VT

Cliff House Restaurant

Cliff House Restaurant, one of the restaurants at Stowe Mountain Resort, offers a mountainside eating experience at the top of the gondola on Mount Mansfield. The restaurant is known for American cuisine with a rustic Vermont flair, serving classics like chicken sandwiches and New England clam chowder.

Stowe’s Cliff House is open for lunch from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. daily once the season starts on Dec. 14. A valid ticket or season pass is required to ride the gondola to the restaurant.

Award: No. 8 in Best Ski Restaurant

Location: 7231 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT (top of the mountain gondola)

The INN Restaurant & Bar

Taking the third place spot for best ski restaurant is the restaurant at The INN, a quaint inn in Montgomery Center.

Guests have a choice of eating in the intimate dining room, lively tavern or riverside deck. The INN’s seasonal menus offer upscale comfort food made from fresh, local ingredients, completed with various craft cocktails.

The inn’s restaurant is open year-round on Thursday-Sunday starting at 5 p.m. Reservations are highly recommended.

Award: No. 3 in Best Ski Restaurant

Location: 241 Main St., Montgomery Center, VT

Darkside Snowboards

Darkside Snowboards is a premiere snowboarding shop with locations in Killington and Ludlow. Just making the list of best ski shops at 10th place, this shop has everything a snowboarder could want, from performance and freestyle boards to boots, helmets, goggles and clothing for the sport. Darkside does also offer ski rentals, but mainly focuses on snowboarding equipment.

Hours for this snowboard shop are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily in Ludlow and 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily in Killington, with extended late-night hours Monday-Wednesday.

Award: No. 10 in Best Ski Shop

Location: 1842 Killington Road, Killington, VT; 57 Pond St., Ludlow, VT

Skiology Ski and Sports

Right down the road from Downside Snowboards in Killington is Skiology Ski and Sports, USA Today’s second choice pick for best ski shop. The store offers a wide range of high-performance skis, from recreational to racing and all-mountain to powder, as well as daily ski rentals and professional tuning services.

Skiology is open from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.

Award: No. 2 in Best Ski Shop

Location: 937 Killington Road, Killington, VT

Pinnacle Ski and Sports

Pinnacle Ski and Sports, a Stowe ski shop that has been open for over 35 years, took the top spot for ski shops in this year’s 10Best awards.

Along with a wide selection of equipment and apparel, Pinnacle offers custom boot fitting, ski and snowboard rentals, ski mounting and tuning, ski repairs and a delivery concierge service. The shop is open daily from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Award: No. 1 in Best Ski Shop

Location: 1652 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT

Mount Snow Resort

Ranking fifth for best snow tubing location is Mount Snow Resort, a slopeside resort in the southern Vermont town of West Dover. The resort’s tubing hill has eight lanes and a conveyor lift, with tickets for two-hour time slots available.

In addition to snow tubing, Mount Snow has 86 skiing trails, a halfpipe and large terrain park. For those who want to stay, the Grand Summit Resort Hotel, Mount Snow’s lodging property, has almost 200 guest rooms and amenities like a spa, a health club, a heated pool and many locations for dining and retail.

Award: No. 5 in Best Place for Snow Tubing

Location: 39 Mount Snow Road, West Dover, VT

Viking Nordic Center

Londonderry’s Viking Nordic Center has over 16 miles of woodsy ski trails through classic Vermont scenery along the West River. All levels and types of cross-country skiing are welcome, whether classic, skate or snowshoe. For those just starting, the resort also offers lessons and rentals.

On select nights during ski season, Viking Nordic Center lights about two miles of their trails with overhead lights and gas lanterns from the 1900s, creating a unique nighttime skiing experience.

Award: No. 8 in Best Cross-Country Ski Resort

Location: 615 Little Pond Road, Londonderry, VT

Bolton Valley Nordic Center

Located in Bolton Valley overlooking the scenic Lake Champlain, Bolton Valley Nordic Center is a mountain adventure resort with the highest elevation in the Northeast.

The backcountry terrain offers trails for Nordic skiers and snowshoe enthusiasts of all levels, earning the resort a fifth place ranking in best cross-country ski resort. Additionally, Bolton Valley has paths for alpine, night and backcountry skiing, totaling in 71 trails.

Award: No. 5 in Best Cross-Country Ski Resort

Location: 4302 Bolton Valley Access Road, Bolton, VT

Topnotch Resort

Topnotch Resort, a luxury resort and spa located in the foothills of Mount Mansfield, ranked sixth for best ski hotel. Cozy, sophisticated rooms come together with beautiful gardens and a contemporary restaurant for a charming New England stay.

Along with skiing and snowboarding through the Stowe Mountain Resort, Topnotch has over 100 acres of activities like hiking, biking and horseback riding. Amenities include a spa, a fitness center, three pools, a tennis academy and seasonal activities.

Award: No. 6 in Best Ski Hotel

Location: 4000 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT

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Vermont

We can be thankful for Vermont’s wild turkeys

Published

1 day ago

November 23, 2024

Press Room

We can be thankful for Vermont’s wild turkeys

One of our native wildlife species historically played an important role on Thanksgiving Day. North America’s native wild turkeys were the ancestors of the Thanksgiving turkey on our dinner table.

Originally found only in the wild, turkeys now exist as meat-producing domesticated varieties — the broad breasted white, broad breasted bronze, white Holland, bourbon red, and a host of other breeds – all of them descended from our native wild turkey.

More than 140,000 servings of Vermont wild turkeys are harvested each year – that’s 140,000 servings of free-ranging, wild and sustainably harvested protein.

Wild turkeys exist throughout Vermont today, but that was not always the case. Wild turkeys disappeared from Vermont in the mid-to-late 1800s due to habitat destruction when land was cleared for farming and only 25 percent of the state was covered by forest.

The wild turkeys we see in Vermont today originated from just 31 wild turkeys stocked in Southwestern Vermont by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department in 1969 and 1970. Vermont’s forest habitat was once again capable of supporting turkeys. State wildlife biologists moved groups of these birds northward, and today Vermont’s population of turkeys is estimated at close to 50,000.

This is just one of many wildlife restoration success stories we can be thankful for in 2024. Funding for Vermont’s wild turkey restoration was derived from the sale of hunting licenses and a federal tax on hunting equipment.

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