Molly Gray

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Molly Gray
MollyGrayCrop.jpg
Gray in 2020
83rd Lieutenant Governor of Vermont
Assumed office
January 7, 2021
GovernorPhil Scott
Preceded byDavid Zuckerman
Personal details
Born (1984-03-18) March 18, 1984 (age 37)
Newbury, Vermont, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
Michael Palm
​
(m. 2021)​
RelativesBob Gray (father)
William B. Gray (uncle)
EducationUniversity of Vermont (BA)
Vermont Law School (JD)
Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (LLM)
ProfessionAttorney

Molly Gray (born March 18, 1984) is an American attorney and politician serving as the 83rd and current lieutenant governor of Vermont. A member of the Democratic Party, she was previously an assistant attorney general for Vermont from 2018 to 2021.

A native of Newbury, Vermont, Gray graduated from the University of Vermont (BA, 2006), Vermont Law School (JD, 2014), and the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (LLM, 2016). While in college, she interned in the Burlington office of U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy. She was active in the successful 2006 U.S. House campaign of Peter Welch, then joined his staff after he took office in 2007. Gray subsequently worked on human rights issues for the International Committee of the Red Cross. After law school, she worked for the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers, an organization created to monitor the human rights compliance of private security contractors.

In August 2018, Gray was appointed an assistant state attorney general in the Vermont Attorney General's Criminal Division. She also taught at Vermont Law School, with her courses centered primarily on international human rights law. In early 2020, Gray announced her candidacy for lieutenant governor. In the August primary, she defeated better-known state senators Tim Ashe and Debbie Ingram for the Democratic nomination. In the November 2020 general election, she defeated Republican nominee Scott Milne by a vote of 51.3 to 44.2 percent.

In December 2021, Gray announced that she would be a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022.[1] Incumbent Peter Welch was not a candidate for reelection because he opted to run for the U.S. Senate seat of the retiring Patrick Leahy.[1]

Early life and education[]

Molly Rose Gray[2] was born in Newbury, Vermont on March 18, 1984.[3][4] Her father, Bob Gray, competed in the 1968 Winter Olympics and 1972 Winter Olympics as a cross-country skier.[5] Her mother, Kim Mumford, was an alpine skier who was prevented by an injury from qualifying for the Olympics.[5] Her uncle, William B. Gray, was the United States Attorney for Vermont.[6] Bob and Kim Gray raised Molly and her two siblings on a 225-acre (91 ha) vegetable and dairy farm.[3] The farm is located in Newbury, Vermont and is still operated by the Gray family.[3]

Gray attended the schools of Newbury and Bradford's Oxbow High School,[7] and graduated from Stratton Mountain School in 2002.[2] She studied at the University of Vermont (UVM) on an athletic scholarship and competed for the Vermont Catamounts in cross-country skiing.[5][8] Gray earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in area and international studies from UVM in 2006 and a Juris Doctor from Vermont Law School (VLS) in 2014.[9] While at VLS, Gray served as symposium editor for the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law.[10] In addition, she was co-chair of the VLS International Law Society.[11] She earned a Master of Laws in International Law from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in 2016.[12]

Early career[]

While in college, Gray served as an intern in Patrick Leahy's Vermont office.[6] She then worked on Peter Welch's 2006 campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives, and became a member of his Congressional staff after he was elected.[6][8] She later worked for the International Committee of the Red Cross, where she engaged the U.S. government on humanitarian issues and led field missions to Haiti, Uganda, Georgia, the Western Balkans, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[13]

Gray graduated from Vermont Law School in 2014 and worked as a law clerk for Judge Peter W. Hall of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.[14] She was admitted to the bar in February 2017 and worked for the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers, the first global initiative mandated to oversee the human rights compliance of private security contractors.[9] In this role she successfully launched the association's human rights monitoring program and led missions in East Africa, Nigeria and Iraq.[9] In August 2018, she was hired by state Attorney General T. J. Donovan as an assistant attorney general in the Criminal Division.[12] In addition, Gray has taught courses at Vermont Law School, with her instruction focused on international human rights law.[9]

Political career[]

2020 Vermont elections[]

Main article: 2020 Vermont elections § Lieutenant Governor

Gray announced her campaign for lieutenant governor in early 2020.[12] She defeated Tim Ashe and Debbie Ingram in the Democratic primary on August 11, 2020.[15] In the November 3, 2020 general election, Gray faced Republican businessman Scott Milne.[16] One major issue raised in the campaign was whether Gray met the four-year residency requirement the state constitution mandates for the lieutenant governor; most legal and political observers agreed that she did.[17] A related issue was that Gray had not voted between 2008 and 2018.[18][19] Milne also admitted to not having voted in some elections, but characterized himself as a consistent voter and Gray as an inconsistent one.[18][19] Gray won the general election, receiving 51.3% of the vote.[20]

Election history[]

Gray's election results include:[21]

2020 Democratic Primary, Vermont Lieutenant Governor

Molly Gray, 47,636 (46.0%)
Tim Ashe, 35,954 (34.7%)
Brenda Siegel, 9,945 (9.6%)
Debbie Ingram, 9,466 (9.1%)
Other/Write-in, 568 (0.5%)

Total votes: 103,569

2020 General Election, Vermont Lieutenant Governor

Molly Gray (D), 182,820 (51.3%)
Scott Milne (R), 157,065 (44.1%)
Cris Ericson (Progressive), 7,862 (2.2%)
Wayne Billado III (Independent), 5,101 (1.4%)
Ralph Corbo (Banish the F35S), 2,289 (0.6%)
Other/Write-in, 1,097 (0.3%)

Total votes: 356,234

Lieutenant governor[]

Gray took office in January 2021, and is the fourth woman to serve as Vermont's lieutenant governor.[22] Within months of taking office, Gray hired a nearly full-time political staffer.[23] While Gray has a chief of staff in the lieutenant governor's office to aid with official duties, she indicated that she had also hired a full time political assistant to aid her in keeping "a clear distinction between official work and political things that may come up from time to time."[23] Some Vermont political observers suggested Gray was a likely candidate for the U.S. Senate or U.S. House.[23] Gray discounted such speculation, indicating that she was instead focused on her work as lieutenant governor.[23]

As lieutenant governor, Gray virtually hosted classrooms at the Vermont State House so schoolchildren could experience being "Lieutenant Governor for a Day."[24] Through her "Seat at the Table" meeting series, Gray met with local leaders to discuss issues facing Vermont, from equity in access to health care and broadband, to the economic wellbeing of women and how to tackle climate change.[25] She also toured the state throughout 2021, visiting all 14 counties for her "Recover Stronger" initiative.[26][27]

U.S. House campaign[]

In December 2021, Gray announced her candidacy for Vermont's at-large congressional district in the United States House of Representatives in 2022.[28] The seat has been held by Peter Welch, who announced in November his candidacy for the United States Senate seat of Patrick Leahy.[29] Leahy announced earlier in November that he would not campaign for reelection in 2022.[30]

Personal life[]

On August 29, 2021, Gray announced that she had married airline pilot Michael David Palm.[31] According to Gray, they met in Burlington after being introduced by mutual friends.[31] The wedding took place at the Gray family farm in Newbury.[31]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Goldstein, Sasha (December 6, 2021). "Lt. Gov. Molly Gray Announces Run for U.S. House". Seven Days. Burlington, VT.
  2. ^ a b Morin, Meredith, ed. (Winter 2013). "Alumni News: 2002; Molly Gray". Starting Gate. Stratton, VT: Stratton Mountain School. p. 22 – via Issuu.com.
  3. ^ a b c Smith, Nicola (July 6, 2018). "Newbury's 4 Corners Farm Undertakes the Tricky Transfer Between Generations". Valley News. West Lebanon, NH.
  4. ^ Gray, Charlie (March 18, 2020). "A call to service on Molly's Birthday". News About Molly Gray's Campaign. Burlington, VT: Molly Gray for Vermont. Today is my sister Molly’s birthday." ... "I invite you to join me in recognizing Molly's 36th birthday with an act of service today.
  5. ^ a b c Therrien, Jim (March 9, 2020). "Molly Gray brings campaign for lieutenant governor to county | The Bennington Banner | Bennington Breaking News, Sports, Weather, Traffic". The Bennington Banner. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c Flanders, Colin. "Newcomer Molly Gray's LG Bid Has Gained a Lot of Traction. How?". Seven Days. Burlington, VT. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "Spotlight: Molly Gray". Stratton Magazine. Manchester Center, VT: Old Mill Road Media LLC. February 1, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Flanders, Colin (February 27, 2020). "Molly Gray Kicks Off Campaign for Lieutenant Governor | Off Message". Sevendaysvt.com. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  9. ^ a b c d "Molly Gray JD'14 | Vermont Law School". www.vermontlaw.edu. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  10. ^ Remmel, Emily, ed. (Spring 2014). "Front Matter". Vermont Journal of Environmental Law. 15 (4): 4 – via JSTOR.
  11. ^ Sala, Richard K.; Gray, Molly. "Reaching Critical Mass: An Introduction From the Hosts of the 2013 Solutions Conference" (PDF). Vermont Law Review. South Royalton, VT: Vermont Law School. 38 (1): 1.
  12. ^ a b c "Molly Gray touts global experience, Vermont roots, in run for lieutenant governor". VTDigger. July 21, 2020.
  13. ^ Kahrs, Lee J. (May 7, 2020). "Assistant AG runs for lieutenant governor". Addison County Independent. Middlebury, VT.
  14. ^ Keays, Alan J. (March 11, 2021). "Peter Hall, lone Vermont judge on federal appeals court, dies at 72". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
  15. ^ "Molly Gray and Scott Milne to face off for lieutenant governor". VTDigger. August 11, 2020. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  16. ^ Norton, Kit (November 3, 2020). "Newcomer Molly Gray defeats Scott Milne in lieutenant governor's race". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
  17. ^ Meyn, Colin (July 10, 2020). "Molly Gray confident her 15 months in Switzerland OK despite 'residency' requirement". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
  18. ^ a b Flanders, Colin (September 25, 2020). "In LG Race, Gray and Milne Clash Over Their Voting Records". Seven Days.
  19. ^ a b Meyn, Colin (September 29, 2020). "Fact-check: Molly Gray's claim she voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 is false". VTDigger.
  20. ^ "VT lieutenant governor results: Molly Gray beats Scott Milne". The Burlington Free Press. November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  21. ^ "Election History, Molly Gray". Ballotpedia.org. Middleton, WI: Lucy Burns Institute. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  22. ^ "Meet Molly Gray". Molly Gray for Vermont. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  23. ^ a b c d Gram, Dave (March 17, 2021). "Team Molly: Lt. Gov. Gray Hires a Political Staffer to Stay 'Connected'". Seven Days.
  24. ^ "Lt. Governor Molly Gray launches 'Lt. Governor for a Day' program". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT. February 10, 2021.
  25. ^ "Lt. Governor Molly Gray to host 'Seat at the Table' on equity in public health". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT. February 17, 2021.
  26. ^ Gray, Molly (June 10, 2021). "Commentary: Lt. Gov. Molly Gray; To recover stronger, we have to listen to Vermonters". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
  27. ^ Sukiennik, Greg (December 6, 2021). "Lt. Gov. Molly Gray announces bid for the U.S. House". Bennington Banner. Bennington, VT. Last month, she released the results of her “Recover Stronger” listening tour, in which she crisscrossed the state talking to residents about what Vermont needs to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. That report identified workforce development, housing, child care, paid family and medical leave, mental health and internet and cellular service as priorities, based upon meetings in 29 communities in all 14 counties.
  28. ^ Mearhoff, Sarah (December 6, 2021). "Vermont Lt. Gov. Molly Gray launches campaign for U.S. House". VT Digger. Montpelier, VT.
  29. ^ Ring, Wilson; Rathke, Lisa (November 22, 2021). "Vermont Democratic U.S. Rep. Peter Welch to seek Senate seat after Leahy retirement". USA Today. McLean, VA. Associated Press.
  30. ^ Epp, Henry (November 15, 2021). "Vermont's Patrick Leahy says he will retire from the U.S. Senate". NPR.org. Washington, DC: National Public Radio.
  31. ^ a b c "Vermont's lieutenant governor ties the knot". WCAX-TV. Burlington, VT. Associated Press. August 29, 2021.

External links[]

Political offices
Preceded by
David Zuckerman
 Lieutenant Governor of Vermont
2021–present 		Incumbent
Retrieved from ""