Progressive Vermont state Sen. Becca Balint topped Lt. Gov. Molly Gray to win the Democrat House primary Tuesday, immediately positioning her to make history as the first woman representing the state in Congress.
Vermont is the last state in the country to add a female member to its congressional delegation. Balint, who immediately becomes the favorite in November's general election, would also be the first openly gay member of Congress from Vermont.
She was endorsed by some of the nation's top leaders on the left, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
Balint is vying to fill the state's lone House seat, which is being vacated by Rep. Peter Welch who is running for Senate and easily secured the Democrat nomination on Tuesday. Welch is trying to succeed Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Senate’s longest-serving member, who is retiring, creating Vermont's first open Senate seat since 2006, when Sanders succeeded Jim Jeffords.
Balint's victory means the state's congressional politics are poised to shift to the left and more closely adhere to Sanders' progressive values.