(The following was originally published on Seven Days.)
Democratic activist John Bauer dropped his plans to run for lieutenant governor Thursday, setting up a one-on-one race between Republican Lt. Gov. Phil Scott and former Progressive legislator Dean Corren.
When he entered the race in March, Bauer hoped to become the first candidate in a decade to take advantage of the state’s public financing system, which would have provided his campaign up to $200,000. But on Thursday afternoon, just before the deadline to file as a candidate, Bauer said he’d failed to qualify.
“Despite a strong effort from our volunteer team and our friends, colleagues, and allies, we fell short of collecting enough contributions from Vermont voters to qualify for public campaign financing by today’s deadline,” Bauer said in a written statement. “I am proud that we brought the idea to pursue public financing into the political conversation three months ago. We have spread the word to a whole new generation of Vermonters about public financing and how it works.”