Mark Shepard for Congress and for Vermont

By Mike Eldred | Deerfield Valley News | August 31, 2006

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BENNINGTON- As the "underdog" in this year's primary race for the Republican nomination to Vermont's only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, Mark Shepard is in familiar territory.

In 2000, during his first bid to represent Bennington County in the Vermont Senate, he beat the favored Republican by 38 percent. That year the primary fell on September 12, Shepard's birthday.

This year Shepard is up against another Republican favorite - a favorite of Washington Republicans, Shepard says - and once again, this year's primary will fall on September 12, the day Shepard will turn 46.

In some respects, Shepard's underdog status is ironic. He's the only native-born Vermonter in the race, and Vermont voters have been known to favor their native sons and daughters. He's conservative, but he says he's a traditional conservative; like many Vermonters, he rejects many of the policies of the current administration and the national Republican Party.

"I don't think they're really conservatives," he says. "What they've done is anything but responsible government. They've taken us to huge deficits and supported bills like No Child Left Behind. It's not what people should accept from their government."

Sometimes Shepard can sound downright radical, but that may be an asset in a state where people routinely fantasize about exercising the state's unique right to secede from the union. "One of the major issues in this race is that of the democratic process and the party system itself," he says. "Do we want it to be controlled by a very few people in Washington, D.C.? That's not a democratic process, that's the antithesis of it. A vote for me says the process is of the ultimate importance and won't be overridden by D.C. interests."

Shepard says his opponent, Martha Rainville, is the "anointed" favorite of the "Washington establishment," but he's betting Vermonters won't be impressed by campaign visits from Barbara Bush, John McCain, and other national Republican figures on her behalf. "I never put a lot of weight on D.C. figures, and to me it seems like the oddest thing to have them come here and campaign," he says. "I'm looking to get elected by the people of Vermont. These big wheels wouldn't convince me to vote for anyone."

Although Shepard may be well-known in the county he has represented in the Vermont Senate since 2002, he knew he would have to overcome a lack of name recognition in the rest of the state. His status as a relatively unknown figure in statewide circles also limits his ability to raise money. "I don't have special interest money," he says. "Some of that is their choice, some of it is mine. I don't want to be beholden to PAC from D.C., I want to be beholden to the people of Vermont."

At the end of June Shepard purchased a used motor home as his mobile campaign headquarters. He has been traveling the state with his family, meeting voters county by county, attending parades, old home days, and fairs. He hasn't spent a night at home since the Fourth of July, he says, except for one night this week - and even then he was right back on the road the next day.

"My race is against time, not Rainville or (Democratic candidate Peter) Welch," Shepard says. "My focus has been to let people get to know me. And once they know I'm here and what my campaign stands for, people come over to support me. I've seen people tear off other candidate's bumper stickers and put on ours."

Shepard's populist campaign style proved successful in his state senate bid four years ago. "When I ran for the state senate, I visited every town in the county," he says. "This time, I haven't been able to visit every town in the state, but I've been to every county in the state and visited dozens of towns."

Through his travels, Shepard says he has been able to connect directly with Vermont voters in a way that isn't possible through the typical official campaign structure. "There were ten debates scheduled, although they were more like forums, and my opponent has only been to two of them," he notes. "Vermonters have really missed out on the opportunity to ask questions about where we would lead the state and country."

Through his travels, Shepard says he's been able to get his message out to voters, and he says people have gotten a chance to see the differences between him and his opponent. "One of the big differences is the philosophy of whether you believe people should have control of their own lives, or whether other people, the government, should control them," he says.

He also touts his credentials as an outsider and an underdog. "If you look at the other candidates, they're so heavily supported by special interests," he says. "Anyone who gets elected with that kind of power and money has to buy into the system. You don't get new ideas from establishment folks - they're trying to protect the status quo."

One of the biggest differences, Shepard says, is that he's comfortable being an outsider, and he's ready to focus on the needs of Vermont voters rather than party politics or "I won't be going to down there to be part of a club," he says. "I'm happy being a dad and an engineer. That's the real difference between the three of us candidates."

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"... many politicians talk the talk about doing something tangible about new jobs and it doesn't go much further. Sen. Shepard walked the walk."
"Sen. Shepard's big accomplishment, and it is a significant one, lies in the major role he played in bringing the Bennington Microtech Center into being."

Bennington Banner State Senator Endorsement Editorial, October 29, 2004

Paid for by Shepard for Congress Committee