1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

The 1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1992 to elect the U.S. representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate.

1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

← 1990 November 3, 1992 1994 →
 
Nominee Bernie Sanders Tim Philbin Lewis E. Young
Party Independent Republican Democratic
Popular vote 162,724 86,901 22,279
Percentage 57.8% 30.9% 7.9%

Sanders:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Philbin:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

Representative
At-large before election

Bernie Sanders
Independent

Elected Representative
At-large

Bernie Sanders
Independent

Republican primary edit

Candidates edit

  • Tim Philbin, insurance agent[1]
  • Ralph Sinclair, snack company owner[2] (Withdrew, endorsed Philbin)[3]
  • Jeff Wennberg, mayor of Rutland[4]

Campaign edit

A total of three candidates made the ballot in the Republican primary, insurance agent Tim Philbin, Rutland mayor Jeff Wennberg, and Ralph Sinclair.[3] Wennberg was considered a moderate Republican, backing abortion rights and tax increases on the rich, while Philbin and Sinclair were conservative Republicans who were opposed to abortion and any tax increases.[3] Originally, Wennberg was considered the frontrunner in the primary, but in early September 1992 Sinclair, who had fallen into a distinct third place in the race, withdrew his candidacy and backed Philbin, which was viewed as potentially giving the latter the edge.[3]

Endorsements edit

Jeff Wennberg
Federal officials
Organizations
Newspapers and publications

Results edit

Republican primary results[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Philbin 18,489 50.21
Republican Jeff Wennberg 14,881 40.41
Republican Ralph H. Sinclair (Withdrawn) 3,250 8.83
Republican Write-ins 203 0.55
Total votes 36,823 100.00

Democratic primary edit

Candidates edit

Declared edit

Declined edit

Results edit

Democratic primary results[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lewis E. Young 16,305 90.08
Democratic Write-ins 1,796 9.92
Total votes 18,101 100.00

Liberty Union primary edit

Liberty Union primary results[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberty Union Peter Diamondstone 308 95.36
Liberty Union Write-ins 15 4.64
Total votes 323 100.00

General election edit

Candidates edit

Campaign edit

As the campaign began Sanders and Philbin immediately began to attack each other in the press, with their sniping deemed by the Brattleboro Reformer as a "fax war".[13] Sanders attacked Philbin for opposing abortions, even in cases of rape and incest, and championed his own record supporting abortion rights.[13] Philbin responded by accusing Sanders of misrepresenting his position, and accused the incumbent of supporting "fat budgets and high taxes".[13]

Debates edit

1992 Vermont at-large congressional district general election debates
 No. Date & Time Host Moderator Link Participants
Key:
 P  Participant    A  Absent    N  Non-invitee  
Peter Diamondstone Timothy Philbin Bernie Sanders Lewis E. Young
  1[14] 
September 26, 1992
P P P P

Endorsements edit

Tim Philbin (R)
Federal officials
Newspapers and publications
Bernie Sanders (I)
Lewis E. Young (D)

Polling edit

Poll source Date(s)
administered
Sample
size
Margin
of error
Tim
Philbin
Bernie
Sanders
Lewis
E. Young
Other Undecided
Political/Media Research September 15, 1992 610 (LV) ± 4.0% 22% 43% 9%
The Burlington Free Press ± 5.0% 23% 49% 5% 1%[a] 22%

Results edit

Vermont's At-large congressional district election, 1992[12]
Party Candidate Votes %
Independent Bernie Sanders (incumbent) 162,724 57.78
Republican Tim Philbin 86,901 30.86
Democratic Lewis E. Young 22,279 7.91
Liberty Union Peter Diamondstone 3,660 1.30
Natural Law John Dewey 3,549 1.26
Freedom for LaRouche Douglas M. Miller 2,049 0.73
Write-ins N/A 464 0.16
Total votes 281,626 100.00
Independent hold

Notes edit

  1. ^ Peter Diamondstone with 1%

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Bernie Sanders Debates Gun Control in 1990 Sportsmen's Forum". YouTube. SevenDaysVT. June 26, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  2. ^ Stanley, Peter (July 9, 1992). "Sinclair confident he can beat Sanders". Bennington Banner. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Liley, Betsy (September 3, 1992). "Sinclair out of primary, backs Philbin". The Burlington Free Press. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  4. ^ "ADI: Burlington-Plattsburgh in Vermont" (PDF). Dole Archives. University of Kansas. 1992. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  5. ^ "Jeffords Endorses Wennberg bid for Congress". Rutland Daily Herald. Southern Vermont Bureau. July 13, 1992. Retrieved August 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "NRA backs Wennberg in U.S. House race". Bennington Banner. Associated Press. September 5, 1992. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  7. ^ Mitchell, Robert W.; Wild, Kendall; Van Hoesen, John W. (September 1, 1992). "Making a Choice". Rutland Daily Herald. Retrieved August 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b c "1992 Primary Election Results" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 26, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  9. ^ a b Donlan, Ann E. (September 8, 1992). "Democrat makes low-key run for congress". The Burlington Free Press. p. 4. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  10. ^ Allen, Susan (January 7, 1992). "Rutland mayor enters race for Sanders' seat". Bennington Banner. Associated Press. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  11. ^ "John H. Dewey runs for congress". Rutland Herald. October 3, 1992. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d "United States Representative (One District): 1932-2014" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  13. ^ a b c The Editorial Board (September 14, 1992). "Just the fax, ma'am". Brattleboro Reformer. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  14. ^ Hill, Toya (September 27, 1992). "House candidates show stark differences in philosophies". The Burlington Free Press. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  15. ^ Hemingway, Sam (October 16, 1992). "Jeffords chips in to help GOP". The Burlington Free Press. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  16. ^ "More papers endorse Vermont candidates". The Brattleboro Reformer. Associated Press. October 23, 1992. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  17. ^ "Mudslinging". Bennington Banner. November 3, 1992. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  18. ^ "Sanders cites consistency in re-election campaign". The Burlington Free Press. August 17, 1992. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  19. ^ Bell, Mary (November 7, 1992). "Local leaders wait to see what Clinton will do". Bennington Banner. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  20. ^ Mitchell, Robert W.; Wild, Kendall; Van Hoesen, John W. (November 2, 1992). "For Leahy and Sanders". Rutland Daily Herald. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  21. ^ "Dean endorses Lewis house bid". Rutland Daily Herald. Vermont Press Bureau. October 23, 1992. Retrieved January 31, 2022.