Incumbent Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman, who won the Democratic primary Tuesday, will face off in November against former state senator John Rodgers, the Republican nominee.
Zuckerman beat Thomas Renner in Tuesday’s Democratic primary. The Associated Press called the Democratic race shortly before 8 p.m. Tuesday night. As of 10:15 p.m., incomplete results showed Zuckerman with about 60% of the vote and Renner with about 40%.
“I wasn’t quite expecting results this early,” Zuckerman said in a phone interview Tuesday evening. “I’ve worked hard on a lot of issues for folks across that state and I think, thankfully, that’s helped.”
Zuckerman is currently serving his third non-consecutive term as lieutenant governor. He also co-owns and operates an organic farm in Hinesburg.
He was first elected lieutenant governor in 2016 after serving in the state Legislature for two decades. Zuckerman ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat Republican Gov. Phil Scott in 2020, and was reelected as lieutenant governor in 2022 after Molly Gray left the post to run in the Democratic primary for the U.S House of Representatives.
About 20 minutes after declaring Zuckerman the winner, the Associated Press declared Rodgers the winner of the Republican race. As of about 10:15 p.m., incomplete results showed Rodgers winning about 61% of the vote, compared to his opponent, Gregory Thayer, who received about 39%.
“Well that’s cool it got called,” Rodgers said in a phone interview after being informed that he’d won. “I feel awesome.”
Rodger, of West Glover, is a former Democratic member of the state Legislature who served eight years in the House of Representatives and eight years in the Senate. Rodgers runs a stonework and excavation business, as well as a hemp and cannabis farm.
Rodgers lost his seat in the Vermont Senate in 2020 after missing the filing deadline to be on the ballot and attempted to run as a write-in candidate. He also ran an unsuccessful write-in campaign for governor during the 2018 Democratic primary in an attempt to challenge Scott after the moderate Republican signed several gun control measures into law.
Rodgers, who was endorsed this year by Scott, ran as a Republican because he believes the Democratic Party has shifted too far to the left.
The lieutenant governor’s position is largely ceremonial, though they preside over the Senate and would take over the executive branch if the governor is unable to serve. The post also provides a platform to advocate for issues — and in this race, affordability is set to be a major point of contention for Rodgers and Zuckerman.
“The Democratic party has gone so far to the left and has been taken over by the progressives — they just no longer represent the working class, average Vermonters,” Rodgers said on Tuesday night. “The cost of living that they’re dumping on people is unsustainable.”
Zuckerman on Tuesday night said he’s looking forward to a robust debate on the campaign trail with Rodgers, his former colleague in the Senate.
“There’s a lot of appropriate discontent out there,” Zuckerman said. “We’ve continued to, we being the world of politics in Vermont, have continued to sort of hit working class people too hard, while the wealthier folks aren’t quite pitching in the way they could.”
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