Elections

2018 Election Results in Big Wins for Pro-Environment Candidates

Vermont Conservation Voters (VCV) is pleased to announce that in its priority electoral races, pro-environment candidates won 28 out of 33 hotly contested seats in the 2018 elections. Further, an overwhelming majority of Vermont Conservation Voters-endorsed candidates won their races, including 5 statewide officers, 20 state senators, and 93 state representatives.

On Election Day, Vermonters sent a clear and unmistakable message that climate change and clean water matter, and they expect to see progress on these issues in the upcoming legislative session. VCV’s priority candidates had a very strong night, and we’re excited to have a new slate of champions for whom environmental issues were a cornerstone of their campaigns.

Environmentally-focused electoral campaigns* were run in a targeted list of tightly contested House and Senate races. Specific activities to help elect pro-environment candidates included: sending approximately 70,000 mail pieces, placing advertisements in five local newspapers, running digital advertising that reached nearly 63,000 Vermonters, and knocking on doors and calling more than 2,000 Vermonters.

VCV’s efforts helped contribute to flipping numerous open seats from anti-environment to pro-environment lawmakers, successfully defending vulnerable environmental allies, and unseating several incumbents with weak environmental voting records.

Further, a supermajority of Democrats and Progressives won seats in both the Vermont House and Senate, which could open up more opportunity for progress on a range of environmental priorities in the coming session. For instance, this past year a bill to reduce children’s exposure to toxic chemicals in kids’ products fell just four votes shy of overriding Governor Scott’s veto of the legislation and passing into law. In the coming year, this bill could garner enough votes to pass into law, whether or not the Governor supports the bill.

VCV was excited to reach so many voters in a variety of ways this election season – especially in some very tight races where our efforts contributed to important victories for pro-environment candidates.

As we face environmental crises that demand action, VCV is thrilled that Vermont voters gave our newly-elected lawmakers a clear mandate to tackle issues including climate change and clean water. VCV congratulates all the newly-elected lawmakers, and looks forward to working together in the coming legislative session for a healthy, thriving Vermont.

See below for a full list of VCV-endorsed candidates.

Please note that electoral activities described were conducted by Vermont Conservation Voters Action Fund (an independent expenditure political action committee) and Vermont Conservation Voters PAC (a coordinated political action committee).

Voter Information

Election Day is Tuesday, November 6th, 2018.

Click on the following link to find your town’s 2018 Vermont Polling Locations & Hours: 2018 Vermont Polling Locations

All polls in Vermont open between 5 and 10 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 6th.

Vermont Conservation Voters Endorsements

In election years, Vermont Conservation Voters (VCV) endorses pro-environment candidates, and works to help elect our endorsed candidates. As a non-partisan organization, VCV has a long history of endorsing candidates from across the political spectrum who share our environmental values.

Through its endorsements, VCV aims to educate voters across Vermont on candidates whose values and actions demonstrate a commitment to ensuring Vermonters have access to clean air, clean water, clean energy, healthy forests, reduced exposure to toxic chemicals, and sustainable communities.

To inform our endorsement process, VCV closely tracks lawmakers’ actions at the State House, including key votes on environmental bills in our Environmental Scorecard and sponsorship of legislation that advances the Environmental Common Agenda of top legislative priorities, which VCV releases each legislative session in partnership with other advocacy organizations. For new candidates, VCV requires candidates to respond to a questionnaire that provides context on a candidate’s environmental background and positions on a range of issues facing the state. For statewide candidates, Board and staff invite candidates for an in-depth in-person interview.

The endorsements listed below were selected by the VCV Board of Directors in recognition of incumbent candidates with strong environmental voting records in 2017-2018 and over their lifetime (with little exception, endorsed candidates received an 80% or higher on our Environmental Scorecard), as well as new candidates who submitted strong questionnaires demonstrating their support for climate action, clean water, and other priorities.