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2000 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

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2000 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont's at-large district
← 1998
November 7, 2000
2002 →
 
Nominee Bernie Sanders Karen Ann Kerin Peter Diamondstone
Party Independent Republican Democratic
Alliance Liberty Union
Popular vote 196,118 51,977 14,918
Percentage 69.21% 18.34% 5.26%
Sanders:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
Kerin:      40–50%
U.S. Representative before election

Bernie Sanders
Independent

 Elected U.S. Representative

Bernie Sanders
Independent

The 2000 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 7, 2000, to elect the U.S. representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate.

Incumbent Independent Bernie Sanders defeated Republican nominee Karen Ann Kerin, the first ever openly transgender candidate for Congress, and Democratic nominee Peter Diamondstone, a socialist activist and perennial candidate.

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Declared

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  • Karen Ann Kerin, lawyer and former engineer[1]

Withdrawn

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  • Lloyd Robinson, transportation consultant[2]

Results

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Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Karen Ann Kerin 47,632 92.47
Republican Write-ins 2,981 5.79
Republican Bernie Sanders (write-in) 895 1.74
Total votes 51,508 100.00

Democratic primary

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Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Peter Diamondstone 20,539 90.94
Democratic Bernie Sanders (write-in) 1,337 5.92
Democratic Write-ins 710 3.14
Total votes 22,586 100.00

General election

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Candidates

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  • Peter Diamondstone (Democratic), perennial candidate and socialist activist[4]
  • Karen Ann Kerin (Republican), lawyer and former engineer[1][5]
  • Daniel H. Krymkowski (Libertarian), professor at the University of Vermont[6]
  • Jack Rogers (Grassroots), farmer and educator[7]
  • Bernie Sanders (Independent), incumbent U.S. Representative[4]
  • Stewart Skrill (Independent), farmer and flower grower[8]

Campaign

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Kerin, a transgender woman, received national media attention for being the first openly transgender candidate for Congress.[9] She expressed frustration with the media focus on her transgender status rather than her political positions, stating to Newsweek that she wanted reporters to "ask me more about what's in my head and less about what's between my legs".[9] There was some surprise at Kerin's decision to run as a Republican, due to that party's opposition to LGBT rights at the time; Kerin stated to The Advocate that she believed that Republicans were stauncher defenders of civil rights than Democrats.[10] Kerin's campaign was primarily based around economic issues, but she nevertheless expressed pride at being the first transgender congressional candidate.[10][11]

There was substantial confusion surrounding the reason that Kerin had decided to undergo a sex change; Kerin herself claimed that it was for medical reasons after she was diagnosed with prostate cancer in order to avoid a colostomy, but an investigation by several newspapers revealed that whether Kerin had ever been diagnosed with prostate cancer was in question, with Kerin's ex-wife claiming that Kerin had simply wanted to change her sex, and Kerin having given an interview to a Delaware newspaper a decade prior where she discussed her reasons for changing sex, not mentioning cancer.[1] When questioned by the Barre Montpelier Times Argus Kerin was unable to explain how getting a sex change would have prevented her from needing a colostomy.[1]

Endorsements

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Peter Diamondstone (D)

Individuals

Results

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Sanders carried every country and all but one municipality in the state, with Kerin winning the town of Stratton.

Vermont's at-large congressional district election, 2000[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Independent Bernie Sanders (incumbent) 196,118 69.21%
Republican Karen Ann Kerin 51,977 18.34%
Democratic Peter Diamondstone 14,918 5.26%
Independent Stewart Skrill 11,816 4.17%
Grassroots Jack Rogers 4,799 1.69%
Libertarian Daniel H. Krymkowski 2,978 1.05%
Write-ins N/A 760 0.27%
Total votes 283,366 100.00
Independent hold

Results by county

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County[13] Bernie Sanders
Independent		 Karen Ann Kerin
Republican		 Peter Diamondstone
Democratic		 Various candidates Margin Total
# % # % # % # % # %
Addison 12,252 72.8% 2,900 17.2% 767 4.6% 919 5.4% 9,352 55.6% 16,838
Bennington 10,017 59.3% 4,404 26.1% 1,555 9.2% 917 5.4% 5,613 33.2% 16,893
Caledonia 8,744 66.1% 2,663 20.1% 605 4.6% 1,222 9.2% 6,081 46.0% 13,234
Chittenden 51,161 74.5% 10,498 15.3% 2,902 4.2% 4,119 6.0% 40,663 59.2% 68,680
Essex 1,591 57.6% 715 25.9% 218 7.9% 239 8.7% 876 31.7% 2,763
Franklin 14,070 75.3% 2,692 14.4% 799 4.3% 1,133 6.1% 11,378 60.9% 18,964
Grand Isle 2,584 73.3% 554 15.7% 152 4.3% 233 6.6% 2,030 57.6% 3,523
Lamoille 8,174 74.9% 1,757 16.1% 390 3.6% 593 5.4% 6,417 58.8% 10,914
Orange 8,984 62.8% 2,278 15.9% 659 4.6% 2,374 16.6% 6,706 46.9% 14,295
Orleans 8,263 70.0% 1,828 15.5% 490 4.1% 1,227 10.4% 6,435 54.5% 11,808
Rutland 17,682 62.6% 6,763 24.0% 1,571 5.6% 2,212 7.8% 10,919 38.6% 28,228
Washington 21,229 74.0% 4,134 14.4% 1,222 4.3% 2,090 7.3% 17,095 59.6% 28,675
Windham 13,127 63.6% 4,672 22.6% 1,711 8.3% 1,145 5.5% 8,455 41.0% 20,655
Windsor 18,240 64.8% 6,119 21.7% 1,877 6.7% 1,930 6.8% 12,121 43.1% 28,166
Totals196,11869.2%51,97718.3%14,9185.3%20,3537.2%144,14150.9%283,366

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 "GOP congressional candidate's change of sex questioned". Barre-Montpelier Times-Argus. Associated Press. June 6, 2000. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  2. ↑ Eckel, Mike (July 21, 2000). "Race for Congress features unusual mix, as usual". Rutland Herald. Associated Press. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  3. 1 2 "2000 Primary Election Results" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 "United States Representative (One District): 1932-2014" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Obituary: Karen Ann Kerin". Vermont World. January 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  6. ↑ King, Wilson (November 1, 2000). "Sanders gets workout from opponent at VPR". The Brattleboro Reformer. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Candidate for representative to Congress". Rutland Daily Herald. October 29, 2000. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Stewart Skrill". The Herald. December 14, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  9. 1 2 "On the trail". The Economist. July 15, 2000. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  10. 1 2 Dahir, Mubarak (July 18, 2000). "GOP's trans candidate". The Advocate. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  11. ↑ Dahir, Mubarak (August 2, 2000). "Nation's First Transgender Candidate for Congress Is Unique In More Ways Than One". Windy City Times. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  12. ↑ Eckel, Mike (October 10, 2000). "Challengers try to shake house race out of the doldrums". The Burlington Free Press. Associated Press. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Primary and General elections Vermont". Secretary of State of Vermont. November 7, 2006. Retrieved July 21, 2026.
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