Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
politician and former 39th Mayor of
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...
. Kiss was a member of the
Vermont House of Representatives
The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...
Vermont Progressive Party
The Vermont Progressive Party, formerly the Progressive Coalition, is a progressive political party in the United States founded in 1999 and active only in the state of Vermont. As of 2019, the party has two members in the Vermont Senate and se ...
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
U.S. Senator
Bernie Sanders
Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...
blue-collar
A blue-collar worker is a working class person who performs manual labor. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involving manufacturing, warehousing, mining, excavation, electricity generation and powe ...
roots, having grown up as the son of a
union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
worker in
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...
. He was a high school basketball player and captain of the tennis team. After having graduated with a B.A. in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...
, where he trained in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
for 14 weeks. Although called up by a
draft board
{{further, Conscription in the United StatesDraft boards are a part of the Selective Service System which register and select men of military age in the event of conscription in the United States.
Local board
The local draft board is a board th ...
for military service, he was granted
conscientious objector
A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...
status and performed alternative service at a hospital in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
.
Since 1971, when he moved to Burlington, he has been working in the human services field. In 1981, Kiss was hired as director of the Community Action program for Chittenden County, a
low-income
Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little
advocacy group. Six years later, he became head of Community Action's umbrella organization, the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity. Kiss remained head of the CVOEO until 1999. He also served on the boards of the Burlington Housing authority and the committee on temporary shelter during this time.
Political life
Legislative record
Kiss was elected to a seat in the Vermont House of Representatives in 2000 as the standard-bearer of the Progressive Party. He quickly earned the respect of his colleagues and was subsequently anointed leader of the Progressive Party
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
. He sponsored legislation on
whistle blower
A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...
protection for health care workers, rental housing health and safety, and outdoor lighting.
Kiss represented the Chittenden 3-4 House district. He stepped down from the legislature on April 1, 2006 after being elected mayor of
Burlington
Burlington may refer to:
Places Canada Geography
* Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Burlington, Nova Scotia
* Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington"
* Burlington, Prince Edward Island
* Burlington Bay, no ...
Kiss was elected mayor of Burlington on March 7, 2006. In the election, he prevailed over opponents
Hinda Miller
Hinda Miller, ''nee'' Schreiber (born April 18, 1950 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada) is a former Democratic member of the Vermont State Senate, representing the Chittenden senate district.
Hinda Miller was elected to the Vermont State Senate i ...
,
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, and
Kevin Curley
Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ).
The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicized from , an ...
,
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. With his election Kiss became the second Vermont Progressive to be elected to the office (
Peter Clavelle
Peter A. Clavelle (born May 10, 1949) is an American politician who served as the 38th and 40th mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and was the first member of a third party to hold the office since James Edmund Burke in 1935. Bernie Sanders also won ...
was the first). Bernie Sanders, who is associated with the party but not a member, had been elected to this office prior to Clavelle. Kiss won re-election in 2009 to a second term as Burlington mayor by edging Republican City Council President
Kurt Wright
Kurt Wright (born February 7, 1956) is an American Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
...
in the third round of
instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a type of ranked preferential voting method. It uses a majority voting rule in single-winner elections where there are more than two candidates. It is commonly referred to as ranked-choice voting (RCV) in the Un ...
after receiving 29% of the first round votes.
During his re-election campaign Kiss was endorsed by Vermont's
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
U.S. Senator
Bernie Sanders
Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...
. After re-election Mayor Kiss and the City of Burlington faced significant challenges related to
Burlington Telecom
Burlington Telecom is a municipal telecommunications company providing residents of Burlington, Vermont with television, telephone and internet services. The company runs its communications offerings on a citywide fiber-optic network.
History
A ...
, a city-owned and operated fiber-to-the-home telecommunications enterprise. Burlington Telecom is currently in proceedings at the Vermont Public Service Board for being out of compliance with its Certificate of Public Good because of its use of the City's pooled cash account. Also related to the use of pooled cash, the City defended a taxpayer lawsuit in Chittenden County Superior Court, which was dismissed in October 2012. In addition, Burlington was sued in federal court by Citibank, related to the lease-purchase agreement for Burlington Telecom. The city owes Citibank over $33 million. Over this period the City of Burlington's credit rating has been downgraded by Moody's, reflecting the financial challenges posed by Burlington Telecom. Throughout this time, the telecom entity has continued to provide its fiber-to-the-home services to Burlington residents and businesses.
Vermont Senate candidacy
Kiss announced in May 2012 he would run as an independent for the
Vermont Senate
The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members. Senate districting divides the 30 members into three single-member districts, six two-m ...
. Kiss finished 8th of 14 candidates running for six seats.
Affiliations
As mayor, Kiss was a member of the
Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition
Everytown for Gun Safety is an American nonprofit organization which advocates for gun control and against gun violence. Everytown was created in 2013 when Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America joined forc ...
, a
bi-partisan
Bipartisanship, sometimes referred to as nonpartisanship, is a political situation, usually in the context of a two-party system (especially those of the United States and some other western countries), in which opposing political parties find co ...
group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition was co-chaired by
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
Mayor
Thomas Menino
Thomas Michael Menino (December 27, 1942 – October 30, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 53rd mayor of Boston, from 1993 to 2014. He was the city's longest-serving mayor. He was elected mayor in 1993 after first serving three ...
and
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
Mayor
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...
.
Personal
Bob lives in a Burlington duplex with his companion of more than 30 years, Jackie Majoros.