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.