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Advance script of speech calls for ‘smarter, harder fight’ in 2026
By Guy Page
Former Vermont Republican State Committee Chair and Behind The Lines columnist Rob Roper will nominate Sen. Russ Ingalls (R-Essex-Orleans) to lead the state GOP at the state convention in Burlington Saturday afternoon, arguing that Ingalls has the leadership skills, energy, and vision necessary to guide Republicans to victory in 2026.
VDC obtained exclusive access to an advance copy of the speech Thursday night. In an address that combines praise for outgoing chair Paul Dame with a sharp call for change, Roper says that while Dame is “a good administrator,” the party needs a leader who can “build, work with, and lead a team.”
“I like Paul Dame very much,” Roper begins. “I count him as a friend and hope that after today he still counts me as one. He is a good speaker and knows the mechanics of how to navigate Party paperwork very well. He’s a good administrator. I also think Paul would make a superlative candidate for Secretary of State — something I hope he will consider.”
But, Roper continues, “after trying to work with Paul on party projects over the years… I don’t believe Paul has the skill set or the instincts to be the leader the party needs to achieve victory in 2026.”
Roper cites four core areas where he believes the Vermont Republican Party must improve under new leadership: fundraising, candidate recruitment, team building, and messaging.
“As a leader, as opposed to an administrator, in my observation Paul struggles with these key elements of the job of being chair,” Roper says. “After talking with Russ Ingalls and members of the team he is working to put together, I believe Russ has a better, more coherent and concrete plan for 2026 — and a more complete skill set needed to successfully carry it out.”
‘Aggressive fundraising plan’
Roper says one of Ingalls’ greatest strengths will be his ability to raise money and connect directly with donors.
“Fundraising is a challenge for any chair — donors generally don’t want to give to the party, they want to give to candidates directly,” Roper says. “Russ has an aggressive fundraising plan, and I believe that his status as a sitting Senator, working day in and day out with our incumbent legislators directly on the policies that voters are concerned about, will give him more leverage and credibility to make a compelling pitch to donors.”
He adds that Ingalls’ willingness to serve as an unpaid chair gives him additional credibility: “It helps that the money Russ will be asking for won’t be going to pay his own salary, but to support campaigns — which is ultimately what donors are looking to do.”
National investment pitch
Roper says Ingalls would actively pursue national resources to strengthen Vermont’s Republican efforts.
“Last cycle Vermont outshined the whole rest of the country in terms of legislative races,” he says. “We have the most compelling argument to take to the national organizations to say invest here. Put one or two million dollars into Vermont today, and we can deliver a state senate majority in November 2026 while building the foundation for federal Senate races in 2028 and 2030, when Welch is up and Sanders retires.”
“Russ will put together a presentation, get on a plane to Washington, and make that case,” Roper says. “Will it work? Certainly not if we don’t have a chair who’s willing to try. And Russ is willing to try.”
Linking caucus and grassroots
Roper also points to Ingalls’ experience as a state senator as key to unifying Republican messaging between lawmakers and the base.
“I also believe that Russ being an active legislator will make coordinating a message between the caucuses and the grassroots a smoother and more effective process,” Roper says. “I’ve watched Russ fight on the floor of the Senate against the Clean Heat Standard and the Global Warming Solutions Act. He stood up for property taxpayers when almost nobody else would. These are messages that need a statewide megaphone out from under the Golden Dome.”
Social media and recruitment
Roper says the party has “tremendous communications potential,” noting that the Vermont GOP has more than 14,000 Facebook followers.
“Social media is a tool that we can’t afford to underutilize,” he says. “Republicans have the issues on our side. Republicans have the solutions that Vermonters are looking for. But we need to maximize all the tools at our disposal to break through the wall of Democrat and media disinformation about who we are and what we stand for. I am confident Russ will meet this challenge.”
He also calls for earlier and more aggressive candidate recruitment.
“Two Republican senators resigned last month. Within 24 hours, Democrats had candidates announce they were running for those seats — a full year ahead of the election,” Roper says. “Last cycle, we didn’t have candidates for something like a third of the seats we contested until after the filing deadline. That’s not the ideal way to run the railroad.”
‘We need to fight harder, smarter’
Roper concludes with a warning that the GOP cannot rely on the same conditions that led to its 2024 “red wave.”
“Vermont Republicans did a lot of things right in 2024, but we also got away with a lot of mistakes and missed opportunities,” he says. “Democrats were arrogant and overconfident about their climate change agenda, and blindsided by a massive property tax increase we were able to pin the blame on them for. They are not making these mistakes again.”
“If we think Republicans can do what we did last cycle and expect the same results, we’re in for a very rude surprise,” Roper says. “We need to fight harder, we need to fight smarter, and we can’t miss opportunities to improve. Electing Russ Ingalls chair today is an opportunity to improve that we don’t want to miss.”
Roper served as Vermont Republican State Committee Chair from January 2007 to November 2009. He is also a former president of the Ethan Allen Institute, a free-market think tank. He publishes a Vermont policy Substack page, “Behind The Lines,” and hosts a weekly radio program on WDEV, Vermont Viewpoint.
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Categories: politics
What do Vermont Democrats/Progressives have that the Vermont GOP does not have? Full support of non-profits, NGOs, government employees and government unions; which is their rock solid lifeblood base. Above all, they have a tight, compensated, grift grip on and full control over. Who exactly is prime, in this small State, to turncoat or flip their vote? We are obviously not in Snelling country anymore. Basically, business owners, party faithful, or conflicted moderates is all that is left for the GOP, no matter how much DC money flows in. The other side has a whole lot more coming in from all sides and sides unknown. There within lies the sword, if one dares to fall upon it. My guess if you expose who is running their machine, it takes down and out a number off your side as well.
If only full transparency, ethics, and genuine honesty were profitable and considered worthy in these times. What a different and more balanced State we could be – but alas, it appears not be so because so many, too many, are compromised.
True.
Also True:
They can only do as told, they cannot veer from the plan.
They can only vote as they are told.
They don’t have truth and science on their side.
They are indoctrinated; they are not free.
They do not have, most certainly, peace.
They are overflowing with pride.
These are very, very detrimental to their cause and are easily tripped over by it.
Most true, he has already won, we only need to relax and submit, his plan is perfect.
You forgot most of the media….
I work for the state and can say without a doubt that the state agenda and state employees are woke ideologs bent on destroying capitalism. One employee actually told me that I was correct and equity was rebranded socialism. She then went on to say, “If we told those greedy capitalists what Equity really was they would want to keep their money. Every commissioner, state agency and our governor is participating in this mass deception.
Mr. Roper, your real problem is that scum that took over New York City and to push out any operation like that in Vermont and that means your going to have to get tough to remove this garbage or you are part of this garbage.
Now, remember left eye black eye Bernie supported the new mayor in New York City and do billionaires support Bernie???????? Inquiring minds would like to know. Comment from Richard Day.
Asymmetrical warfare.
Coke vs Pepsi
David vs Goliath
Sun Tzu
Rules for Radicals
Charlie Kirk
Memes and parables
Exposing hypocrisy and hearts.
Ground game.
Meme games.
Truth and Love
If I was on the slate to vote this year, as has been the case in the past, I would be voting for Russ Ingalls, without question, or reservation whatsoever.
Russ gets it, need I say more.
Managing Complex Change, a massive undertaking for the VTGOP
Dr. Mary Lippet made a wonderful graph that rang so true, I had to keep it over these years. It is also a diagnostic tool, when you use in reverse. You see the issue within ag group and go back to what the root causes, this is no slight undertaking.
While I can’t post the graph, I’ll try and make it simple in words.
CHANGE HAPPENS when you have the following, ALL TOGETHER:
Vision, Skills, Incentives, Resources and Action plan.
CONFUSION happens within the group when there is no vision.
ANXIETY happens within the group when there are no skills
GRADUAL CHANGE happens when you don’t have Incentives
FRUSTRATION happens in the group when you don’t have resources
FALSE START happens in the group when you have no action plan.
So, if you look at the VTGOP, from a distance, objectively, you’ll find people are very frustrated, many false starts, very little change, confusion and infighting and many false starts.
We desperately need a clear vision. Reagan stuck with three points; that’s about all people can remember if you are lucky.
AFFORDABILITY – Homes, Health Insurance, Jobs, Education
DRUGS AND CRIME- one of the highest per capita of addicted births, Lord help us. Massive increases in addiction, massive increase in crime, epi center is Chittenden County. Criminal abuse of taxpayer funds.
EDUCATION – We have failed out children. They are not safe in our schools, we are getting very poor results, despite spending massive amounts of money one of the highest in the country. There is no local involvement anymore they are complete government schools, by the government and for the government, THE CHILDREN ARE ALWAYS, ALWAYS LAST. They are teaching lust, not love.
The task before us is no small amount of work or effort. If we swim downstream, rather than upstream, if we use their own forces against them, rather than fighting, but exposing actions and ….exposing their hearts, life will be easy, fun and we can win.
Some of us have not won nearly enough, we are NOT sick of winning, winning hearts and spreading love, that is way.
Of course we have to recognize what has happened in Vermont, like New York’s recent mayoral election, it is no coincidental occurrence that Bernie was there supporting him…..they are following the same plan. This was how Vermont was taken over, it’s called subversion. And if you study subversion or even watch the video below you will understand the steps are clear and well laid out on how they do it. Step by step, so it’s no small task, but we must undo them step by step.
Education/indoctrination is the foundation of subversion, the internet being the gas.
Yuri also talks about the solution, which is on a higher plane, who’s wings we’ve been resting on from our founders and ancestors. Enjoy…..
And if you listen quickly to this video by Kris Anne Hall, you will be surprised at how much is happening today that happened also when our country was founded….it’s very disturbing on how history is repeating itself. These two videos are very powerful.
I LOVE this woman!
I can attest that people are very much set in their tribes to everyone’s detriment.
We are afraid to throw some bones to those who do care for the poor, who do see some oppression, who do have concerns for the environment, and these are and should be part of the Republican platform a few bones to our neighbors could do wonders, just a couple of bones for discussion.
1) Give the poor a break and help the environment while staying true to conservative roots.
Reduce car registration to $5 per year for cars over 10 years old
No tax on any car that gets a combined 30+ mpg.
2) Demand equal pay for men and women, while we are the minority.
This will do many things at once. There are surely some pay inequities, they will be corrected. It will also expose their lies and hypocrisy. They won’t do it, notice they never talk about it when they are the majority? No conservative wants his daughter, sister, mother or wife not getting fair pay, call it out, there is a no-lose situation for the VTGOP in this.
3) Environmental destruction.
Tax the hell out of glyphosate, no tax on farms converting to organic, 7-year transition, 50% tax reduction on all organic farms. Those getting subsidies must put some hours in on a local farm.
I think that less than a year after posting the largest legislative gain for Republicans in the statehouse in over15 years and the largest GOP seat pickup in the nation, Paul Dame needs to continue his forward momentum as Chair.
Russ Ingalls has pledged greater fundraising and greater recruitment. I cannot help but wonder what magic wand Russ will use to acheive these goals.
The problem with this argument is that the reasons the VTGOP won big in 2024 almost all took place outside the party. The fundraising that allowed senate candidates to run well financed professional races — not the Party. The messaging — GET REAL and Right for Vermont’s “Vote them Out” social media campaign targeting Dem voting records — not the Party. Until property tax rates were announced in July recruitment numbers were very low, resulting in too many last minute write in and appointee candidates without time to run proper races…. If Republicans want to win in 2026, the Party needs to pull its weight in all these areas.
Excellent Rob Thank you and I certainly hope he becomes the next VTGOP Chair.
Well put endorsement and agree 100%.
Bravo Zulu!
How much money one might raise will not the determinating factor in the next election.
Changing the Republican party leadership which played a successful part of the historic gains in the 2024 election to a more ideological right wing leadership will give an opening to Democrats.
Those Democrats, who have learned the lessons of affordability and to temper their extreme positons, will be able to appeal to the many moderate voters who provided the difference for Republicans in the last election. Many of these moderates in Vermont, as in the rest of the country as evidenced by the election this week, are now willing to base their votes based on their opposition to the more extreme actions of the Trump Administration.
Whether we like it or not, the fact is that Democrats are also hoping that Russ Ingalls will be the next Republican Party Chair as it will greatly increase their chances at regainng all they lost in the last election.
This isn’t ideological, it’s logistical. From a messaging standpoint, the reason Republicans won big in 2024 wasn’t because they were “moderate” (whatever that means). They won because they – via the governor’s voluminous number of vetoes and override votes — were able to draw a bright policy line between what Republicans stand for and what Democrats stand for, primarily on property taxes and energy policy, which were issues where an overwhelming majority sided with Republicans. Then enough money was poured into messaging from non-Party sources to keep the overall campaign focused on THAT, and not who was at the top of the ticket. In other words, Republicans had the right message, and had enough money to make that message stick.
Yes, you are correct that the Democrats look stronger now than they were, and have learned lessons from that campaign. They are improving their team and adjusting their strategy. As such it will be a harder election season for Republicans in 2026. Even winning teams look to get stronger in the off season. We need the Party to be a stronger player moving forward.
We also need a candidate for Secretary of State, and Paul would be a really great fit for that role, if we can convince him, strengthening the team at two positions.
Fundraising almost always takes place “outside the party” these days, with the advent of “independent expenditure committees”, 527’s, “Action PAC’s” and other funding mechanisms taking the Party’s place by legal necessity.
What recruitment taking place after property tax increases shows is 1) Vermont’s long standing tradition of not running until the Eleventh Hour or 2) the fact that current events are the strongest driver of political happenstance. In some states, the campaigns never end…we don’t tend to start until July.
What the “Russ Ingells’ of the Party need to understand, is while success has 1000 fathers, failure is an orphan….Vermont looks an awful lot to GOP’ers as a failure and promising a garden of primrose is not suddenly going to make it happen.
That said, at the end of the day, where the buck stops is Paul Dame’s desk. Given that the Party’s greatest recent triumphs, removing the veto protection of the Democrats, was achieved under Dame’s watch. This tells us that something is working at VTGOP Party headquarters.
I hope you all see the wisdom of retaining Paul Dame as Chairman for the GOP Vermont.
“1) Vermont’s long standing tradition of not running until the Eleventh Hour……we don’t tend to start until July.”
Two Republican senators resigned last month. Within 24 hours of each resignation — a year plus before the 2026 election — Democrat candidates announced they were running for those seats. This is PRECISELY why we need to do something to shake up the business as usual mindset that currently exists within the Party. The rules, both unwritten and written in statute, are changing. We need leadership that is ready and able to adapt.
Exactly why we don’t need an untried commodity who may not be ready. We need to stick with Paul Dame’s experience.
Rob Roper, It is also important to note that a significant amount of “outside money” in 2024 for legislative races came from Governor Scott’s own campaign funds.
Governor Scott also gave a considerable amount of his time campaigning for Republican candidates. His efforts working hand in hand with Paul Dame and the Republican Committee to recruit and support these candidates were responsible for the historic wins by Republicans in the legislature and ended the Democratic supermajority.
Now is the time to build on that success not undermine it.
Yes, John, and a big reason I’m supporting Russ is because as a senator himself he was FAR more involved in that recruiting and fundraising effort than Paul was. If you want to build on that success, put someone in charge of the party who was more integrally part of it so that he can bring the full potential of the Party resources into that effort rather than leaving it largely on the sidelines.
And his endorsement of Kamala Harris.
Yes Tyler, he did……lol. But that doesn’t matter.
No, has nothing to do with leadership or direction……
Apparently they have run out of food and are not allowing anymore people, but Instill think you should ask the question, maybe Guy can get it on video.
The three amigos will likely not lead the republic to freedom, they will belly up to the trough of unions, of the pacs of the NGO’s who are the true rulers of Vermont, who are doing the bidding of their masters the NWO. Just ask the 10 people who set Vermonts agenda every year ahead of session.
Oh but we’ve made such progress! We can’t change horses now, we are galloping to victory! This is the same people the same mantra spewed every session, and we lose every time for three decades, but this time it’s going to be different.
Change will only come when we change.
Rob Roper, I understand and appreciate the desire for you and others to have someone who is more in line with your own views in the Republican party leadership.
My experience in over 30 years as Facilities Manager in hiring many contracors is that when you find a plumber, electrician or firm who does good work and the job is getting done in a timely manner that moves things forward, you don’t go looking for someone else to do the job.
I beleive it is important that the Republican party in Vermont not only articulates a practical vision for Vermont, but also has the political power to shape the future. A proven team is now in place and historic gains have been made. It is not a good idea, as they say, to change horses in the middle of the stream.
John, don’t misstate my motivation as ideological. When he was in the legislature Paul Dame had the most conservative voting record of any member of the House. Like Paul, I did not support Donald Trump in ANY primary he’s ever run in (and have caught considerable shade from VDC commenters for being vocal about that). I have zero problems with Paul Dame’s political alignment. I want a Party Chair who can recruit candidates, raise a ton of money to fund them, and lead an aggressive messaging campaign in support of their candidacies. And that is why I’m supporting Russ.
Rob,
While we see things differently, I really appreciate your willingness to engage and further explain your view.
I also appreciate Vermont Daily Chronical providing a place where this kind of back and forth can take place. Something that is unfortunately pretty rare these days in Vermont media.
“recruit candidates, raise a ton of money to fund them, and lead an aggressive messaging campaign in support of their candidacies.”
There within, lies the rub – the key words: recruit (with) a “ton” of money, “aggressive” (hostile, belligerent, combative) messaging. Same tactics as the opposition, so where or what is the difference between the parties? Policies? The choice between the military industrial complex or the welfare industrial complex? Neither sounds good to me or my wallet. Although, either is obviously palitible to sheep nonetheless. A ton of money with no strings attached – I wonder how that is even possible these days.
So much for “grassroot” campaining or candidates – a notion blown to smithereens inside or outside the beltway. The only strategy is to divide and conquer with a ton of money that lies (action or method) outside of the State. Good to affirm the selection process to manage the public Trust requires delusions of granduer and fat bankrolls. I don’t believe that is what the Framers had in mind, yet that is where we are at and that is not a representative Republic – it defines an incorporated corporate syndicate.
Melissa makes sense.
John, If your plumber is charging 2x more than all the other plumbers, that would be called insider dealing, nepotism, cronyism……if you didn’t change plumbers you would be mismanaging. Our schools are 2x more expensive than others and delivering worse results. Same for our medical system, but what ever you do….
Don’t allow school choice.
Don’t allow medical choice.
Yeah, keep the system going,
Same goes for housing, don’t let Vermonters have housing for 40% less, all due to regulation and restriction, no we need to rent from the state!
You guys are the problem, and you don’t even know it.
The Grift must continue at all costs. The Grift…..marxism, democratic socialism, voters saying we want your money, 51 %voted for your money so we are taking it.
Neil, your responses to John are absolutely on target. No one has mentioned the rest of the story as far as the R’s are concerned in VT. The out of here concept is alive and
well as many younger folks with children have learned that it is virtually impossible to get a top of the line education from VT Public schools, with a few exceptions noted.
This has cut into the available rosters of potential candidates on the R side. I believe Dick snelling was the last one in that mold to be Governor, twice. So the Democrats, realizing how this was working fixed it so chain business and industry left the state, starting in the 70’s. Just look how Rutland County was hammered by its losses.
We grow old too soon too late too smart.