Former Republican State Auditor Randy Brock says he’s running for lieutenant governor.
Brock, a Franklin county resident who served two terms in the Vermont Senate, has been a vocal critic of the Shumlin administration, especially on issues of health care reform.
Brock unsuccessfully challenged Shumlin for the governorship in 2012. He says he’s opted for a run for lieutenant governor in 2016 because the post is unencumbered from the daily rigors of running government, and would offer a bully pulpit for needed policy reforms.
“And the biggest opportunity for us is how do we make… the future of Vermont a positive one? And that has to link together everything from employment toward education in particular, as well as how we run and manage our government,” Brock says.
“All of these things are linked together.”
Several other Vermont Republicans are still considering bids for lieutenant governor, including one who was nonplussed by Brock’s announcement Thursday.
"And the biggest opportunity for us is how do we make... the future of Vermont a positive one? And that has to link together everything from employment toward education in particular, as well as how we run and manage our government." Randy Brock, candidate for lieutenant governor
Mark Snelling, who ran for lieutenant governor in 2010, says he’d asked Brock to hold off on announcing a bid until a broader group of Republicans had a chance to sit down and discuss electoral strategy for 2016.
Snelling says he’s considering challenging Brock in a lieutenant governor primary.
“I’m disappointed that Randy has announced,” Snelling said Thursday. “As late as last night I asked Randy to hold off.”
Snelling says the Vermont Republican Party had offered to host a meeting between Brock, Snelling and other possible candidates, which Snelling says would have given everyone an opportunity discuss the best way to fill the GOP ticket in 2016.
“It seemed like a worthy thing to have a group of people get in a room and have a discussion with the party prior to anyone announcing,” Snelling says. “Everybody’s free to do what they like to do, on the other hand I’d like to be part of a team.”
"I'm disappointed that Randy has announced. As late as last night I asked Randy to hold off." - Mark Snelling, 2010 lieutenant governor candidate
Brock’s candidacy, however, is already underway . He’s hired a campaign manager — Brad Ferland, president of the Vermont Energy Partnership. And he says he has a message be believes will resonate with Vermonters.
“I think the lieutenant governor’s office is a great platform to be able to gather ideas and to circulate them and to get people involved in talking about them, and ultimately to produce solutions that will get us where we need to go for the long term,” Ferland says.
Brock hopes to replace Republican Lt. Gov. Phil Scott, who announced his bid for governor last month.
Brock lives in Swanton with his wife, and formerly worked as executive vice president of risk oversight for Fidelity Investments. He served one term as state auditor from 2005 until 2007.
