MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – The race for Vermont lieutenant governor remains up in the air. With all of the votes counted, Republican John Rodgers led David Zuckerman by about two percentage points — 48.7-to-47%, a 6,018 vote margin.
“He hasn’t conceded at this point, but we’ve got a comfortable lead that we’re comfortable with,” John Rodgers said.
But with neither candidate clearing the 50 percent threshold — and no concession yet — Rodgers expects the decision to go to the Legislature to affirm his victory.
Zuckerman did not respond to questions Wednesday about whether he plans to concede. “The Constitution has a process for figuring out what happens next. I have other considerations — do you do a recount? It’s really too soon for me to just say he won, but there’s no doubt he’s got more votes at this point in time,” Zuckerman told WCAX. In a statement on social media, he added that he will continue fighting for his values and he thanked his supporters, saying “together we will never give up.
Since Zuckerman is within two percentage points of Rodgers, he can ask for a recount or rely on the Legislature. Meanwhile, Rodgers is reflecting on his apparent victory. “It’s very rewarding. We knew it was an uphill battle — it always is taking on an incumbent — but we think that as we traveled around the state, as we had a chance to talk to people, our message was well received, and I think if we had more time to talk to more people, we maybe could have widened the margin,” Rodgers said.
Rodgers had the backing of Governor Phil Scott and he says the results of this election show Vermonters are fed up with high prices and rising taxes and ready for something different.
The last time an election went to the Legislature was the 2014 governor’s race when Peter Shumlin finished election night with a 2,400 vote lead over Scott Milne. Milne refused to concede but the Legislature upheld voters’ wishes, affirming Shumlin’s victory on a vote of 110 to 69.
Lawmakers have overturned the will of the voters a handful of times over the years. The last time was the lt. governor’s race in 1976. Democrat John Alden led Republican T. Gary Buckley by 1,100 votes when the ballots were all counted. But Alden was under investigation for fraud at the time and the Republican-controlled Legislature narrowly voted to put Buckley into the governor’s office.
