1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

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%

County results Sanders:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

Representative At-large before election Bernie Sanders Independent Elected Representative At-large Bernie Sanders Independent

Elections in Vermont
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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 of 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 Philbin the edge.^[3]

Endorsements[]

Results[]

Republican primary results^[6]

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

Democratic primary[]

Democratic primary results^[6]

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^[6]

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^[7]
• Peter Diamondstone (Liberty Union), perennial candidate and socialist activist^[8]
• Douglas M. Miller (Freedom for LaRouche)^[8]
• Tim Philbin (Republican), insurance agent^[9]
• Bernie Sanders (Independent), incumbent U.S. Representative^[8]
• Lewis E. Young (Democratic), chef and candidate for Vermont Secretary of State in 1988^[10]

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".^[11] Sanders attacked Philbin for opposing abortions, even in cases of rape and incest, and championed his own record supporting abortion rights.^[11] Philbin responded by accusing Sanders of misrepresenting his position, and accused the incumbent of supporting "fat budgets and high taxes".^[11]

Endorsements[]

Polling[]

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[]

Vermont's At-large congressional district election, 1992^[8]

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[]

References[]