Christine Hallquist, first transgender nominee, will face Phil Scott in Vermont governor election

April McCullum | Burlington Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption 5 things to know about the first transgender candidate for Governor Vermont Democrat Christine Hallquist made election history as the first transgender woman ever to win a major party primary race for governor.

Vermont Democrats made history Tuesday by nominating Christine Hallquist as the first transgender individual to be a major party candidate for governor.

Meanwhile, preliminary results showed that Gov. Phil Scott survived a challenge animated by his former Republican allies in the gun-rights movement.

The general election matchup pits Hallquist, a former utility executive who has never held statewide elected office, against Scott, a former construction company owner seeking a second term.

"I'm going to tell you why we're going to win in November," said Hallquist, holding a clipboard as she addressed a cheering crowd of supporters at the Skinny Pancake restaurant in Burlington. "Because nothing is impossible when you're on the side of justice."

LIVE EVENT COVERAGE: Vermont Democrats rally for Christine Hallquist, 1st major-party transgender gov. nominee

Hallquist’s campaign platform is built on her 13 years as the CEO of Vermont Electric Cooperative, where she says she proved it’s possible to address climate change without raising costs. She has pitched a plan to connect every Vermont home and business with high-speed internet access by relying on electric utilities to string fiber optic cable.

"It's going to take a lot of work to get to every town in Vermont," Hallquist said Tuesday of her upcoming campaign, "and it's going to take twice the amount of work to knock on every door in Vermont, because there's a lot of areas of Vermont that we don't have internet to."

"Not yet!" someone in the crowd yelled.

Her historic campaign has attracted nationwide attention and support, but Hallquist still faces a challenging path as she seeks to defeat a sitting Vermont governor for the first time in more than half a century.

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"Facing an incumbent governor is always a challenge for any candidate," said Alex MacLean, who managed two of former Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin's campaigns. "Vermonters tend to really support their incumbents,"

More: VT Insights: Hallquist latest Democrat to shun corporate donations

Scott, a Republican, was first elected in 2016, pulling together a coalition of independent, Republican and Democratic voters in a year when Vermont overwhelmingly supported the Democratic presidential candidate.

Hallquist was one of them. She now regrets voting for Scott in the last election.

“I knew Phil Scott for many years,” Hallquist said in an interview last month. “So I look at what Phil’s doing today and I say, either this is the Phil Scott that I didn’t know, or I just wasn’t paying close enough attention. But like I tell people, I’m making up for it now.”

Scott held on to the Republican nomination by a comfortable margin over challenger Keith Stern, who rode a wave of anger from gun-rights activists who felt Scott betrayed them.

The owner of a White River Junction wholesale produce business, Stern launched his campaign by arguing that Scott, a fiscal conservative, had not done enough to cut government spending. He also criticized the governor's support for a bill preserving the Obamacare requirement that Vermonters must have health insurance.

But it was the gun issue that came up repeatedly when Scott spoke with voters, and that most threatened his hold on the Republican nomination.

Gun-rights rallies chanted "dump Phil Scott," and online commenters called him "Phlipper."

Scott continues to defend the gun bills that he endorsed, including expanded background checks on private firearms transfers and a limit on magazine size. Gun-rights activists have sued the state over the magazine restriction, arguing that the law is unconstitutional.

"We didn't take any gun rights away," Scott said at a candidate forum last month.

Janssen Willhoit, a Republican state representative from St. Johnsbury who is not seeking re-election, said the results showed that Scott still has the support of Republicans, despite disagreements over guns. Willhoit argued that for those concerned about gun rights, Scott would be a better choice in the fall.

“My hope is that he will double down on his efforts to restore those relationships,” said Willhoit, who endorsed Scott’s campaign. He added that he hoped Scott would not take further steps to regulate guns in the next term.

In his primary night remarks, Scott congratulated Hallquist on her nomination and acknowledged the divisions among his base. He said he had expected a smaller margin in his contest with Stern.

"I want to thank those Republicans who have stuck with me through thick and thin and all those who have put aside partisanship to engage in the primary," Scott said. "It says something very important about Vermont, about the type of candidates we want to nominate, and the good work my team and I have done to grow the economy, make Vermont more affordable, and protect the most vulnerable."

The primary elections appeared to draw a relatively strong turnout. As of 11 p.m., unofficial results showed more total votes cast than were cast in the 2012 and 2014 primaries, and some towns were still outstading.

Contact April McCullum at 802-660-1863 or amccullum@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @April_McCullum.