Brian E. Dubie (born 9 March 1959) is an American politician who was the 80th

lieutenant governor of Vermont The lieutenant governor of Vermont is elected for a two-year term and chosen separately from the governor. The Vermont Lieutenant Governor's main responsibilities include acting as governor when the governor is out of state or incapacitated, presi ...

from 2003 to 2011. He lost the 2010 election for

governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

by fewer than 5,000 votes. He is a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

for

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

and a strategic advisor to growing companies. In 2012, he retired from the

United States Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...

with the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

Education and early career

Brian Dubie attended public schools in

Essex Junction, Vermont Essex Junction is a city in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 10,590. It was incorporated as a village on November 15, 1892. Essex Junction became Vermont’s 10th city on July 1, 2022. Am ...

. He graduated from Essex Community Educational Center in 1977. He attended the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

(1977–1980), returning to Vermont to join the

Vermont Air National Guard The Vermont Air National Guard (VT ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Vermont, United States of America. It is, along with the Vermont Army National Guard, an element of the Vermont National Guard. The 158th Fighter Wing is its sole un ...

and complete his degree work at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

(UVM), where he earned a BS in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

in 1982. He was president of the

American Society of Mechanical Engineers The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing ...

’ UVM chapter.

Aerospace and aviation

While a student at UVM, Dubie joined the

. After graduation, he trained with the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

in the

F-4 Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...

and later the

F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful ...

fighter aircraft. He continued to fly in the Air Guard as he began his career in the aerospace industry. In 1982, Dubie joined Simmons Precision (now Goodrich Aerospace) in

Vergennes, Vermont Vergennes is a city located in the northwest quadrant of Addison County, Vermont, United States. The municipality is bordered by the towns of Ferrisburgh, Panton, and Waltham. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,553. It is the smalle ...

, where he was a project engineer and project manager. He developed fuel systems for military and commercial aircraft. In 1989, he left Simmons to fly for

, first in the

McDonnell Douglas MD-80 The McDonnell Douglas MD-80 is a series of five-abreast single-aisle airliners developed by McDonnell Douglas. It was produced by the developer company until August 1997 and then by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The MD-80 was the second gene ...

aircraft, and currently in the

Boeing 737-800 The Boeing 737 Next Generation, commonly abbreviated as 737NG, or 737 Next Gen, is a narrow-body aircraft powered by two jet engines and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Launched in 1993 as the third generation derivative of the Boein ...

. He has logged more than 10,000 hours in commercial aircraft. As Vermont's lieutenant governor, Dubie founded the Vermont Aerospace and Aviation Association (VAAA) in August 2006. In October 2006, Dubie was elected chair of Aerospace States Association, a national, non-partisan organization of lieutenant governors and governor-appointees from every state, representing the grassroots of American aerospace. He was a member of the

Sigma Phi Epsilon Sigma Phi Epsilon (), commonly known as SigEp, is a social college fraternity for male college students in the United States. It was founded on November 1, 1901, at Richmond College (now the University of Richmond), and its national headquarte ...

fraternity.

Military

All told, Brian Dubie logged more than 2,500 hours in military fighter aircraft. He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the

, serving as instructor pilot, operations support flight commander of the 158th Fighter Wing. In 1998, he left the Air Guard to join the

US Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of comm ...

, where he served as an emergency preparedness liaison officer in the National Security Emergency Preparedness Agency. Serving in that role, Dubie earned a

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: * Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Me ...

, First Oak Cluster, for his actions at

Ground Zero In relation to nuclear explosions and other large bombs, ground zero (also called surface zero) is the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation. In the case of an explosion above the ground, ''ground zero'' is the point on the ground ...

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 ...

following the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

. In September 2005, he served on the Gulf Coast in the relief effort for victims of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. He received the

, Second Oak leaf Cluster, and the

Air Force Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth ...

, First Oak Leaf Cluster, for outstanding achievement at 1st Air Force Hurricane Katrina Operations Center. On June 2, 2012, Dubie retired from the military in a ceremony held at Camp Johnson, the

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

headquarters of the

Vermont National Guard The Vermont National Guard is composed of the Vermont Army National Guard and the Vermont Air National Guard. Together, they are collectively known as the Green Mountain Boys. Both units use the original Revolutionary War-era Flag of the Green Mo ...

Political career

Dubie's first political experience came as a member of the Essex Junction School Board, in the same school system he had attended and where his children were enrolled. He served as a member from 1995 to 2000, and as chair from 1996 to 2000. His first run for lieutenant governor in 2000 was unsuccessful. He ran again and was elected in 2002, and won re-election by comfortable margins in 2004, 2006 and 2008. The constitutional responsibilities of Vermont's lieutenant governor are to preside over the state senate and to act as governor when the governor is absent from the state or incapacitated.

2010 gubernatorial election

On October 1, 2009, Dubie announced his candidacy for Governor of Vermont in 2010 to succeed four-term governor

Jim Douglas James Holley Douglas (born June 21, 1951) is an American politician from the state of Vermont. A Republican, he served the 80th governor of Vermont from 2003 to 2011. On August 27, 2009, Douglas announced that he would not seek re-election fo ...

. In the general election on November 2, 2010, Dubie received 48% of the votes and

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 ...

Peter Shumlin Peter Elliott Shumlin (born March 24, 1956) is an American politician from Vermont. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 81st governor of Vermont from 2011 to 2017. He was first elected to the office in 2010, and was reelected to a ...

49%. On Wednesday November 3, Dubie indicated that he would not seek a recount, and conceded the election. The

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly," but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

(150 House members and 30 senators) selects the winner in contests for governor, lieutenant governor and

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

when no candidate receives a majority of the vote. On January 6, 2011, the General Assembly elected Shumlin, 145 votes to 28.

Personal life

Dubie and his wife Penny have four children: daughters Emily and Casey, and sons Jack and Matt. Dubie's brother, Michael Dubie, served as

Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

of Vermont and deputy commander of

United States Northern Command United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) is one of eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense. The command is tasked with providing military support for non-military authorities in the U.S., and protect ...

, attaining the rank of

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

in the

before retiring in 2015.

References

External links

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dubie, Brian 1959 births 21st-century American politicians Aviators from Vermont Lieutenant Governors of Vermont Living people National Guard (United States) officers Politicians from Burlington, Vermont School board members in Vermont United States Air Force officers University of Vermont alumni Vermont Republicans Vermont National Guard personnel