Amanda Janoo wins Democratic nod to challenge Gov. Phil Scott

Economist Amanda Janoo won the Democratic nomination for Vermont governor on Tuesday and will seek to unseat popular Republican Gov. Phil Scott, the Associated Press reported. Scott was unopposed for the GOP nomination and is running for a sixth two-year term, the AP said.

Janoo defeated former child advocacy organization CEO Aly Richards for the Democratic nod, the AP reported. Richards had been backed by former Vermont governors Howard Dean and Madeleine Kunin, according to the AP.

Scott has said he is running again and, if re-elected and completing another term, would surpass Dean as Vermont’s longest-serving governor, the AP reported. Vermont and neighboring New Hampshire are the only two states that hold gubernatorial elections every two years, the AP said.

The AP also reported that Scott is a moderate Republican and a frequent critic of former President Donald Trump. Scott endorsed former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in the 2024 Republican primary and voted for then-Vice President Kamala Harris over Trump in the 2024 general election, the AP said.

Democrats face a difficult task in the November race in a state where their party typically dominates. Scott won about 73 percent of the vote in his 2024 re-election and about 69 percent in 2022, the AP reported.

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