An independent congressional candidate’s voice in Vermont

by Suzanne “Suz” Seymour

What happens when a stand-up comedian, head-on collision survivor, disabled elder, massage therapist, business owner, and former UVM student of religion and philosophy decides to run for Congress? Apparently, not much—at least according to Vermont’s mainstream media.

Since announcing my 2026 campaign as an Independent challenging incumbent Becca Balint, I have sent press releases, made myself available for interviews, and tried to get my message in front of Vermont voters. The response has been remarkably quiet. Yawn. Pass the popcorn. Yet everywhere I go, Vermonters ask me the same questions: Why are you running? What are your platforms? What are you going to do for me? Those are exactly the questions voters should be asking.

I am running because I believe Vermont deserves representation that sounds more like Vermont. People are struggling with high taxes, housing costs, energy bills, groceries, insurance, zoning restrictions, schools, and the challenges facing our farms and small businesses. They are frustrated, and many feel like nobody in Washington is listening.

I am not a career politician. That is the point. I have paid bills. I have struggled. I have run multiple businesses. I have experienced a disability. I have sat across from ordinary Vermonters and listened to their concerns. And as a comedian, I believe Washington could use a little more humor — and much more accountability. My campaign is built around a simple idea: follow the money. Government spends enormous amounts of taxpayer money on healthcare, housing, addiction, homelessness, defense, pharmaceuticals, and countless other programs. We should be asking where that money goes and, more importantly, whether it actually works.

Take homelessness and addiction for example. Vermonters want compassion, but they also want safe communities, functioning downtowns, and businesses that can survive. We should help people recover, but we should also measure results: How many people enter treatment? How many achieve sustained recovery? How many obtain permanent housing? How many return to work? How much are taxpayers spending per successful outcome?

Those aren’t cruel questions. They’re responsible questions. And they’re questions I intend to keep asking.

Which brings me back to the media. I have been told that I haven’t reached a sufficient level of public recognition to qualify for certain coverage or to be in the debates. But how does an Independent candidate become known if the media doesn’t cover the campaign? I’m not claiming that every journalist is deliberately suppressing my campaign, or that censorship is occurring. There may be perfectly ordinary explanations for the lack of coverage. But I do think Vermonters should ask whether money, corporate ownership, advertising, political connections, and established political networks influence what receives attention — and what doesn’t.

Independent voices matter. Independent journalists matter and have been the only ones that have highlighted my campaign to Vermont voters. Kudos and thank you. Obviously, an election is more informative when voters have an opportunity to hear from all of the candidates who are officially on the ballot in our upcoming election.

So here’s my challenge: Let me debate. Let Vermonters hear the candidates side by side. Let us discuss the issues that are most affecting Vermonters, the ones we talk about at the coffee shops or in line at the gas station. Let voters hear the questions and the answers and make their own judgments. Don’t decide for Vermonters who deserves to be heard or not heard. I think we should let Vermonters decide.

I’m an Independent. I don’t have a political machine behind me. I don’t have decades of political connections. But I’m still here, a real Vermonter, still asking questions. And I’m not disappearing.

ABRA-CADABRA!