Though still a college student, Tabby Connor '05 makes a run at the Vermont House
By Tim McCahill '03
As dusk gathered on the first night of the Addison County (Vermont) agricultural fair, Tabby Connor '05 marched in the opening parade with a group of Republican candidates.
Flanked by antique John Deere tractors and a music wagon, she seemed in her element, her energetic stride a standout among other marchers, many of whom looked as if they'd already put in a long day at the office. A grizzled man in heavy work boots called out, "Hello Tabby," and then nudged his wife. "See that young girl. I'm voting for her." It wouldn't be the first time Connor has received someone's vote.
Politics has always suited the Middlebury senior. Throughout her scholastic career, she managed to win elected office (student council in elementary school, student senate during junior high, ninth-grade president and student-council vice president at Middlebury Union High School), but now the 20-year-old is ready to expand her sights. This fall, Connor faces off against three candidates in the race for two seats in the Vermont state legislature.
It's shaped up to be a hard slog: Two of the candidates are incumbent Democrats; the third is a former Republican state rep and a mainstay in Middlebury town politics. But at 20, Connor is hoping her youth will help get her to the statehouse in time for the start of the legislative session in January. "People are excited to see a young person running," Connor said during a break from campaigning.
And it's easy to tell she's excited, too. A born campaigner, she's predisposed to be optimistic and attentive; it seems her stockpile of enthusiasm is just waiting to be tapped on behalf of voters.
At the College, Connor focused her political passions through her involvement with the College Republicans. She joined the group when it was starting to work with the party on the local and state levels—meeting with legislators at the statehouse and at party headquarters in Montpelier.
Most college campuses are known for their liberal leanings, however, and Middlebury in recent years has been no exception. Students and professors stood side by side with community members to protest the October 2002 visit by Ari Fleischer '82, then press secretary to President George W. Bush, and stickers supporting presidential contender Howard Dean were a common sight before his White House bid fizzled earlier this year.
But Connor said she experienced equal activism and passion inside the ranks of the College Republicans. "We had a really positive experience ... having people listen to us. That was definitely one of my big goals," she said. "Also to increase our visibility on campus, to let people know we were an active group: who we were, why we thought the way we did."
The growth of the College Republicans put Connor in touch with heavy hitters inside the state GOP, including Connie Houston, the Republican leader in the Vermont House. Houston, who represents a town north of Middlebury, approached Connor last winter about running for state office, to "inject some new blood into the statehouse."
Connor greeted the idea with a little uncertainty at first. "It was definitely something I wanted to pursue at some time in my life," she said. But during her senior year of college?
She would need to campaign during the school year, and if she won, her final semester would be spent in Montpelier. She also worried about her inexperience as a campaigner—and a legislator.
Friends and professors seemed to think running was a good idea, however. Their encouragement, coupled with a phone call from the sitting Vermont governor, Middle-bury alum Jim Douglas '72, and offers of support and advice from experienced politicos, convinced Connor that her inexperience would not be a hindrance. A host of savvy campaigners was available to pitch in and help her.
And walking the campaign trail has proved a learning experience so far. She's taken part in the retail events—waving to prospective voters and shaking hands in parades or setting up a table at the fair—and the quieter, more intimate functions, like listening in at local town planning meetings.
"I'm meeting so many interesting people," she said. "Almost everyone I've talked to so far has something they really care about."
Growing up in Shoreham, an agricultural town not far from Middlebury, Connor is deeply rooted in the community. Her father runs a local contracting business. The Connor family name also is familiar in Vermont political history: Her grandfather, Leo J. Connor, was a well-known Democrat, who once ran for lieutenant governor.
Her fears to the contrary, Connor's youth seems to be an asset in the election. Once voters realize her age, they appear to be universally impressed. ("We need a young person to mix things up," some have said.)
She tells a story about walking up to one house and seeing a daunting portent of the welcome she might receive: Dean bumper stickers on the cars parked outside. But after knocking on the door, Connor got an enthusiastic greeting. "They were so happy to talk to me," she remembered. "And they said, 'It's great to see a woman running; I hope you can get some young people motivated.'"
According to Douglas, Connor will have to work hard to keep people excited about her candidacy. The freshman Republican governor has more in common with Connor than just their party affiliation: At 22 he ran successfully for the Vermont legislature, not long after graduating from Middlebury. "It's possible and mandatory to visit every home, to become acquainted with the people of the district," said Douglas, who is on the ballot in November, as well.
But the governor believes that Connor is up to the challenge. "She's very energetic, very intelligent, and determined to succeed," Douglas said. "She's getting a lot of support from folks in the community, including those who are not Republicans."
Connor hopes that support will translate into votes come November. Vermonters are known for not voting down the ballot—Al Gore won the state comfortably
in 2000, but two years later voters elected a Republican governor. Connor hopes that tradition will hold true in her bid for state representative.
If Tabby Connor becomes the youngest representative in the Vermont legislature, it will be the ultimate cap to a senior year, even if it means graduation must be postponed. "I would have to come back next fall to finish up," she commented. "So, my graduation plans are a little up in the air right now—a lot depends on November 2nd."
Tim McCahill '03 lives and writes inMontpelier.
Update: On Election Day 2004, Connor finished fourth in the four-person race for the two Vermont House seats from Middlebury. Incumbent Democrats Betty Nuovo (whose husband is Charles A. Dana Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Midd) and Steven Maier (who's a visiting instructor in environmental studies this fall at the College) were re-elected for two more years in Montpelier—as was Jim Douglas.
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