Blog
Election Night Round-Up: What's Next?
We’re figuring this out, we’re making change, and we’re coming together!
Tomorrow is here: A brief update for Election Day.
We're really doing it: we're Committing to Community! More than 57,000 people have already voted in Vermont. Our town clerk ran out of stickers. There are free desserts all over town! This is the year. Right?
We did it!
We did it! You did it. We did this together: the campaign team, more than 50 volunteers, more than 150 donors, and the entire West Brattleboro community. According to unofficial results, I am the Democratic nominee for Vermont House of Representatives in Windham 2-1.
It's a beautiful day for democracy!
It may be wet out, but it's a beautiful day for democracy!
Polls are open at the Municipal Center (230 Main Street) until 7pm.
If you know someone who needs transportation to vote, have them call or text Chad Simmons at 802-451-8627 to arrange a ride. (Rides will be available until 6pm.)
Gratitude.
The primary is tomorrow—Tuesday the 14th—and I’m filled with such incredible gratitude for the team we’ve put together.
What it's going to take
We need to have the courage to listen deeply, to go into the community, sit on doorsteps, and say “What matters to you?” That’s what it’s going to take for Vermont government to be the participatory democracy that we say it is.
It’s going to take each of us stripping away our righteousness and walking towards each other, with questions, with coalitions, and with excitement for this new future.
Rally for healthcare justice and a stronger democracy
Our healthcare system is broken. I think we can all agree on that. People are suffering, dying, and going bankrupt because they can’t afford the care they need. This has to stop.
Voter Suppression Film Coming to Brattleboro August 1
Election day is nearly here, and I hope you and your friends have been getting to the polls! To mark the last weeks of primary season, we're screening a new important documentary about voter suppression: Capturing the Flag, a film by Anne DeMare. Join us Wednesday, August 1 at 7pm in the Hooker Dunham Theatre at 132 Main St. Refreshments will be served!
I'm listening.
The way I see it, good policy is built of three threads: what researchers can tell us (evidence-based practices), what people who implement policy can tell us (professional experience), and what communities can tell us (lived experience). I’ve built a career on listening, on making spaces for people to speak, and on finding strategies at the intersection of these three threads.
Parading for democracy!
Emilie, her family, and campaign volunteers marched in the Brattleboro Goes Fourth parade, today. Some of our signs included "Work for Democracy" and "Everyone Help - Help Everyone."
Focus on Housing
Housing in Vermont has been at crisis levels for many years now. Brattleboro has one of the lowest vacancy rates in the country, and our wages don't come close to the more than $20 per hour needed for market rate housing.
Lawn signs are here!
Is your yard feeling left out of the political excitement this primary season?!? Fear not, our lawn signs are here!
Join us for an Action Festival to celebrate the first day of voting!
Celebrate the First Day of Voting this primary season!
Vote at the Town Clerk's office, then stroll on up Main Street and join us on the Common for food, music, and fun.
Join Emilie for Community Vision at Tiny House Fest
Emilie will be MC'ing the Community Vision Stage at Tiny House Fest this weekend!
Meet the Campaign Team: Jennifer Jacobs
Meet Jennifer Jacobs, who helps organize our campaign volunteers. Jen is a small business owner with deep roots in our community. She says:
Emilie Endorsed by VSEA
Proud to announce my first endorsement, from Vermont State Employees' Association (VSEA). Unions are the bedrock and lifeline for workers' rights in this country, and around the world. I couldn’t be more proud to be endorsed by this union, and I look forward to working every day in the legislature to support our public sector.
Meet the Campaign Team: Joyce Sullivan, Volunteer Team
So many amazing folks are helping with the work of this campaign! Let me introduce you to Joyce Sullivan, a key member of our Events Team:
Meet the Campaign Team: Sierra Dickey, Campaign Coordinator
Over the next few weeks, I want to introduce you to some of the amazing folks who are working on this campaign with me. Meet Sierra Dickey, our Campaign Coordinator.
Where to find us this weekend: with the heifers!
Join Emilie and the campaign team for a glorious weekend in Brattleboro!
Here's where to find us:
Emilie has filed her paperwork to be on the ballot!
On Tuesday, Emilie filed her petition to run for State Representative for Brattleboro District 1. Though only 50 signatures are required, Emilie's petition had more than 200.
Here is the full announcement:
This Saturday: Meet Emilie at the West Brattleboro Association Annual Barbecue!
Chicken, baked beans, coleslaw, and community! The barbecue takes place yearly on Western Avenue in the West Brattleboro village center. 11 am - 2 pm, but come early because they always sell out.
The case for family leave and a higher minimum wage—in the Governor's terms
Sometimes it helps to speak the language of the people in power, or at least the people you are speaking to, so let’s make the case for an increased minimum wage and paid family leave using Governor Scott’s own words and logic:
Camp for a Common Cause - Friday May 18
Join Emilie and the campaign team at Camp for a Common Cause 2018!
I run because of what I've seen as a mother
Happy Mother’s Day! I’m running for office because I’m a mother. But not simply because I want to make the world a better place for my son—I think he’ll do that quite well himself....
What do we talk about when we talk about guns in Vermont?
I was proud of my state these last few weeks, as student activists made their voices heard, and our legislature listened: quickly passing a series of new measures to increase the safety of our gun culture. When we talk about guns in Vermont we often get into the same conversation about “here and away” or “the way things were.” Sometimes we enter the national dialogue and start talking about “rights.” These are all perfect frames to unpack and ask ourselves questions like “whose history?” and “whose rights”? What did the Abenaki think of those guns? Do we hear the stories of mothers whose sons and fathers shot themselves, or the thousands and thousand of women who have been threatened—“kept in line” by guns throughout Vermont history?