Kesha Ram Hinsdale is a Chittenden-Southeast district state senator and the incoming Senate Democratic majority leader.
One of Vermont’s greatest attributes has long been the spirit of neighborliness that underlies our politics. We are arguably more connected and have a more united sense of purpose with the small scale of our communities, and it has made us kinder and more respectful.
Perhaps that is why we, as Democrats, were surprised to lose so many seats in Vermont. Without any deep animosity or antagonization, Vermonters sent us a simple and clear plea on Election Day to work together to increase their quality of life and lower their cost of living. And I want you to know that we heard you.
When I first began in the legislature in 2009, we had two very solemn and important veto overrides for marriage equality and the state budget at the start of the Great Recession. We agonized over those overrides, and we needed the support of some Republicans and Independents to get to 100 votes for each.
At the time, those two votes represented a full quarter of all the successful veto overrides in Vermont history, which had previously totaled six altogether. This past year, we took six override votes in a single legislative session.
So where do we go from here as the session begins, and as we face interconnected crises from health care to housing to property taxes? I am going to be asking my colleagues to do three things: stay local, stay curious and stay friends.
Staying local is something Vermonters are particularly good at, though it’s gotten harder with the pull of national politics at the extremes. Vermonters gave Nikki Haley her only state victory over Trump in the Republican primary, and voted in large majority for Vice President Kamala Harris.
So this was a very localized message to state Democrats that Vermonters are socially liberal and financially hurting. There may be some despair about what is happening nationally, but there’s also a sense that we must focus on what we can do to uniquely move our state in the right direction. Fuller schools over fewer schools, holistic rural health care and an opportunity economy that lifts up all of us.
After all, what good is it to protect trans kids in our state Constitution if their families can’t find a place to live or afford to be here? How can we lead the nation in tackling climate change if we are creating climate refugees every time it floods? Vermonters are asking us to clean up our own house before railing at Washington, and they are right to do so.
Curiosity is an underappreciated virtue. It makes us more introspective and humble, but in the political sense, it also forces us to get more specific. In the pandemic, when most of us began having our conversations or lesson plans in virtual settings, we lost the nuance of negotiation, compromise and interdependence that can only come from looking someone in the eye or shaking their hand.
We stopped asking each other as many questions, and began writing in chat comments faster than we were appreciating who was around us. When we go back to Montpelier, we are going to have to set aside the sound bites and slogans and really ask each other what we want to accomplish and for whom.
Finally, on a related note, we need to stay friends. Vermonters don’t want us to retreat to our corners and further isolate our politics. This year, we will have a little more elbow room in the Statehouse thanks to some rearranging of offices and space.
As the incoming majority leader, I put in a request for a small office, which would be a first. But there was the conundrum of the Republican minority leader also asking for space as it becomes scarce again. So, I said I would happily share an office with him, as we have much to discuss and collaborate on this coming biennium. It will force us to get along in a way that serves the best and highest interests of Vermonters.
A Republican mentor of mine in the legislature once said, “If we’re both doing our job, then the majority steers the ship and the minority points out the rocks.” Because, after all, we’re in the same boat. So we’re going to have to share the wheel and work with each other to navigate these challenging and uncharted waters. For the good of Vermont and Vermonters.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale: This election, Vermonters asked us to work together.