House speaker looking more and more like candidate

BURLINGTON, Vt.—House Speaker Gaye Symington got a rousing reception from Vermont Democrats at a party dinner, with former Gov. Madeleine Kunin and others urging her to run against Gov. Jim Douglas.

"I hope that I can be there soon when you will become, with the help of people in this room, the next governor of the state of Vermont," Kunin told Symington.

But Symington, who got a standing ovation Friday night at the ninth annual Curtis Awards dinner, was noncommittal. She said she won't decide whether to run until after the Vermont Legislature winds up its 2007-2008 session, which could be next week.

"We need change in the Governor's Office. I am willing to work for that change," said Symington, D-Jericho. "I am seriously considering running for governor."

Douglas, a three-term Republican, is expected to seek another two-year term in the Nov. 4 election. His only challenger so far is Progressive Anthony Pollina.

Pollina also attended Friday night's event, but wasn't introduced from the stage and got no crowd chants urging him to run, as Symington did. Neither did former diplomat Peter Galbraith, who has also said he may run.

Numerous other Democrats have also been named as would-be candidates to oppose Douglas, including former state Sen. Matt Dunne, Senate Majority Leader John Campbell and Sen. Doug Racine.

Whoever opposes him, Douglas will defend his record, spokesman Jason Gibbs said. "Vermonters are going to have a clear choice," he said. "The governor's certainly going to talk about the successes he's had."

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Information from: The Burlington Free Press, http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com

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