Vt. Rep. Asks For Help in Key Race

The president of the Vermont state senate, Peter Welch, called Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean “the more conservative of the two of us” as he addressed undergraduates in Kirkland House last night.

And Welch, who said he was Dean’s close friend, urged Harvard students to come to Vermont to help him campaign for the House vacancy left by Representative Bernie Sanders, an Independent. Sanders decided to run for the U.S. Senate shortly after the departure of the Senate’s only Independent, Jim Jeffords, in April 2005.

Harvard College Democrats President Eric P. Lesser ’07 encouraged students to follow Welch’s call for grass-roots mobilization.

“There are a couple of dozen races in the House worth watching, and this is one,” he said. “There is no definite person to fill the seat, and the stakes are high.”

The campaign holds national significance, Welch told around 15 students. Last week, Illinois Senator and Harvard Law School alum Barack Obama visited Vermont to campaign alongside Welch, drawing over a thousand supporters to a rally, Lesser added.

State Republicans have hired the advertising firm responsible for the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth advertisements in the 2004 presidential election, according to Welch.

The state senator characterized the race as a local referendum on the presidency.

“People see this election...as an opportunity to put a check and balance on the direction in which George Bush is headed,” Welch said.

Some students at the event said they were impressed with the candidate.

“State Senator Welch was inspiring because of his ability to focus clearly on the concrete issues and outline definitive proposals,” Harvard Dems member Indira Phukan ’09 said.