After a failed gubernatorial run in 1982, Madeleine Kunin secured 50% of the vote in her second run in 1984, winning against her Republican challenger, John J. Easton, Jr. Forty years ago, Kunin became the first and only woman to Vermont's highest elected office. She’s the first Jewish governor of Vermont, and also the first Jewish woman to be elected governor of a U.S. state.
"I think the women's movement gave me the idea that women could do anything," Kunin said. "And I wanted to be involved in public events, and being in Vermont politics seemed more accessible. We had a small group of people at that time who encouraged each other to do things larger than their personal lives, and I took that seriously."
When reflecting on the Kunin's career, it’s natural to focus on her historic “firsts.” Once in office, she appointed the first woman to Vermont's Supreme Court, Denise Johnson, She then appointed Mollie Beattie to the Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation, who would go on to become the first woman Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. This legacy continued when, two years ago, Becca Balint was elected as Vermont’s first female representative in Congress.
Ambassadorship to Switzerland
Born in Zürich, Switzerland, Kunin's mother fled the country out of fear that the Nazis would invade. Kunin said she was six years old when she came to America in 1940, without knowing how to speak English.
"As I grow older, my gratitude to her increases, she was very brave," Kunin said. "For us as children, it was all a big adventure. We looked at it as a wonderful time. I played shuffleboard on board the ship, and so it was fun. I didn't know that there were Nazi German ships and submarines in the waters that we were crossing."
She said she feels fortunate that she didn't encounter any antisemitism during her political career in Vermont. The only incident she recalls is when a reporter called her Chief of Staff, Liz Bankowski, and asked her: "What do you do about the three, barriers Madeleine Kunin has? She's a woman, she's a Democrat, and she's Jewish."
"And Liz killed the story," Kunin said. "And I think most people didn't know I was Jewish, and the other people didn't care."
She said her mother instilled in her and her brother, Edgar May, that anything was possible in America. She credits her for her idealism and passion.
In 1996, Kunin was appointed as ambassador to Switzerland. One of her notable achievements during that time was facilitating the creation of a Swiss bank's compensation fund for Holocaust survivors. In 1997, she told the New York Times that she found her mother's name on that list.
"It wasn't my goal but when I was announced, I got a small briefing in Washington about the question of Jewish assets in Swiss banks," Kunin said. "It came up every single day that I was in office, and the question was, was Switzerland in favor of the Nazis in accepting these funds and in not returning them to the owners?"
Kunin said she had to push Switzerland to come forth with these bank accounts and eventually succeeded in getting some of the money returned.
"It was a pretty sensitive question because my job as ambassador was to have a good relationship with Switzerland," she said.
Kunin said she once was asked if she'd been tapped to do the job because she was Jewish.
"No," she said, "But in the end, I felt maybe I was there for a purpose and I was happy we were able to solve the issue, partly, not entirely."
The next four years
"I did think [Kamala Harris] was going to win," Kunin said when asked about the results of the 2024 general election. "As I think your first reaction, at least, that was mine, was sort of to crawl into a hole and ignore what was happening. Since then, I've started to get a broader perspective, and I think we have to be active. If you ignore what is happening, it's a form of acquiescence, as if we accept the status quo."
She said she recently read Alexei Navalny's memoir Patriot, a Russian opposition leader, lawyer, and anti-corruption activist who died earlier this year at a federal prison in Russia's Siberia and says he had incredible courage.
"I think we have to figure out how we can respond. It's hard work. It's maybe thankless work, but we have to find a way within our capacity to stand up for democracy, to stand up for freedom," Kunin said.
When asked about her thoughts on why the Democrats failed, she said the Democratic Party miscalculated what Americans need. She added that Harris ran a stellar campaign.
"She didn't have to apologize about anything, and I was very proud of her," Kunin said.
Kunin said she thought the country would be disgusted by Trump's vulgarity and meanness, but perhaps they liked the idea of a "macho man." She says that while she may not be alive to see it, she hopes the country will turn to a strong woman leader in the future.
"The day after the election, a small group of us went to see the snow geese, and it was so beautiful and a wonderful sunset," Kunin said. "And I thought, 'Nature. Nature will heal us.'"
Broadcast live on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.
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