1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont
	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

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.

Republican primary

Candidates

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

Campaign

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

Jeff Wennberg

Federal officials

Jim Jeffords, U.S. Senator from Vermont^[5]

Organizations

NRA Political Victory Fund^[6]

Newspapers and publications

Rutland Daily Herald^[7]

Results

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	Republican	Ralph H. Sinclair (Withdrawn)	3,250	8.83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

Candidates

Declared

Lewis E. Young, chef and candidate for Vermont Secretary of State in 1988^[9]

Declined

David Wolk, state senator^[10]

Results

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

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

Candidates

John Dewey (Natural Law), former director of Flight Training at the Florida Institute of Technology^[11]
Peter Diamondstone (Liberty Union), perennial candidate and socialist activist^[12]
Douglas M. Miller (Freedom for LaRouche)^[12]
Tim Philbin (Republican), insurance agent^[1]
Bernie Sanders (Independent), incumbent U.S. Representative^[12]
Lewis E. Young (Democratic), chef and candidate for Vermont Secretary of State in 1988^[9]

Campaign

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

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

Endorsements

Tim Philbin (R)

Federal officials

Jim Jeffords, U.S. Senator from Vermont^[15]

Newspapers and publications

Caledonian-Record^[16]

Bernie Sanders (I)

State officials

Donald M. Hooper, state representative and Democratic nominee for Vermont Secretary of State^[17]

Labor unions

Newspapers and publications

Rutland Daily Herald^[20]

Lewis E. Young (D)

State officials

Howard Dean, Governor of Vermont^[21]

Polling

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

Results

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

^ Peter Diamondstone with 1%

References

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

[24] Peter Diamondstone with 1%

[Debatess-1] "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.

[Sinclair-3] Liley, Betsy (September 3, 1992). "Sinclair out of primary, backs Philbin". The Burlington Free Press. Retrieved December 31, 2021.

[Archives-4] "ADI: Burlington-Plattsburgh in Vermont" (PDF). Dole Archives. University of Kansas. 1992. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 27, 2021. 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.

[primary-8] "1992 Primary Election Results" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 26, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.

[Chef-9] 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.

[Results-12] "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.

[Fax-13] 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.

[22] Political/Media Research

[23] The Burlington Free Press

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