1988 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

The 1988 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 8, 1988, to elect the U.S. Representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate. As of 2020, this is the last time that a Republican won Vermont's House seat.

1988 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

November 8, 1988

Nominee Peter Plympton Smith Bernie Sanders Paul N. Poirier Party Republican Independent Democratic Popular vote 98,937 90,026 45,330 Percentage 41.21% 37.50% 18.88%

County results Smith:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60% Sanders:      30-40%      40-50%

Representative At-large before election Jim Jeffords Republican Elected Representative At-large Peter Plympton Smith Republican

Republican primary

Republican primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Peter Plympton Smith	37,230	77.60
	Republican	David Gates	9,964	20.77
	Republican	Write-ins	784	1.63
Total votes			47,978	100.00

Democratic primary

Democratic primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Paul N. Poirier	11,024	33.98
	Democratic	Peter Welch	10,758	33.16
	Democratic	James A. Guest	8,301	25.58
	Democratic	Dolores Sandoval	2,131	6.57
	Democratic	Write-ins	231	0.71
Total votes			32,445	100.00

Libertarian primary

Libertarian primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Libertarian	Jim Hedbor	80	84.21
	Libertarian	Write-ins	15	15.79
Total votes			95	100.00

Liberty Union primary

Liberty Union primary results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberty Union	Peter Diamondstone	124	92.54
	Liberty Union	Write-ins	10	7.46
Total votes			134	100.00

General election

Vermont's At-large congressional district election, 1988[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Peter Plympton Smith	98,937	41.21
	Independent	Bernie Sanders[3]	90,026	37.50
	Democratic	Paul N. Poirier	45,330	18.88
	Libertarian	Jim Hedbor	3,109	1.29
	Liberty Union	Peter Diamondstone	1,455	0.61
	Small is Beautiful	Morris Earle	1,070	0.44
	Write-ins	N/A	161	0.07
Total votes			240,088	100.00
	Republican hold

References

1. "1988 Primary Election Results" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
2. "United States Representative (One District): 1932-2014" (PDF). Vermont Secretary of State. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
3. Friday, March 11, 1988, Bernard Sanders, 46, now in his fourth term as Burlington's mayor, holds a Montpelier news conference to announce he will run for the U.S. House seat held by Rep. James Jeffords, R-Vt., who in turn is running for the U.S. Senate seat held by retiring Sen. Robert T. Stafford, R-Vt. "The state of Vermont has a history of sending unconventional representatives, mavericks, to Washington," Sanders says. "Over 40 years ago, we sent George Aiken there." http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/politics/2015/05/26/sanders-begin-political-revolution/27991467/