Emerge Vermont chief to run for state senate

Former Vermont Lt. Gov. Molly Gray will again run for the state’s second-highest office next year, according to reporting from Seven Days and the Journal-Opinion.

Gray, who grew up in Newbury, rose quickly in statewide politics when she won the lieutenant governor’s race in 2020. After one term, she sought higher office—running for Vermont’s open U.S. House seat in the 2022 Democratic primary—but fell short in that bid.

In the years since, Gray has remained active in public service. A licensed attorney, she has spent the past several years as executive director of the Burlington-based Vermont Afghan Alliance, a nonprofit focused on supporting Afghan families who resettled in Vermont. Her return sets up a likely competitive Democratic primary and signals renewed interest from a figure once considered a rising star in statewide politics.

In other political news, Elaine Hainey announced on the Morning Drive this week that she will run for the Vermont Senate from the Chittenden Central District.

Hainey is executive director of Emerge Vermont, a training organization for Democrat women candidates for office.

According to her Emerge Vermont bio:

“Haney has been involved in local Vermont government for over 20 years. In 2023 she became one of the first elected city councilors for the newly formed City of Essex Junction. Prior to that, she completed three consecutive terms on the governing boards of Vermont’s second largest municipality, serving as a Village of Essex Junction Trustee for seven years, and Town of Essex Selectboard member for three years, the last two as chair.”