Selene Colburn is an American politician currently serving in 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 ...

from the Chittenden-6-4 district since 2017 as a member of the

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 ...

. Prior to her tenure in the State House she served on the city council in

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 ...

. She is the first female chair of the House Progressive Caucus. Colburn was born in Burlington, and educated at Burlington High School,

Bennington College Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont. Founded in 1932 as a women's college, it became co-educational in 1969. It claims to be the first college to include visual and performing arts as an equal partner in ...

, and

Simmons University Simmons University (previously Simmons College) is a private university in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established in 1899 by clothing manufacturer John Simmons. In 2018, it reorganized its structure and changed its name to a university. Its ...

. She became active in politics in her youth when she joined anti-war demonstrations. Colburn was first elected to office with her election to the Burlington city council in the 2014 election and she won reelection in the 2015 and 2017 elections. She was elected to the state house alongside Brian Cina in the 2016 election with the nominations of the Progressive and Democratic parties and was reelected in the

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

and 2020 elections. She was selected to serve as assistant chair of the Vermont Progressive Party's caucus in the state house and then to serve as chair.

Early life

Selene Colburn was born in

. She participated in anti-war demonstrations as a teenager in the 1980s. She graduated from Burlington High School in 1987. Colburn graduated from

with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in dance in 1991, and graduated with a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in library and information science from

Career

Local politics

Colburn was elected to the Burlington city council to succeed Kevin Worden with the nomination of the

in the 2011 election without opposition after Democratic nominee Molly Loomis dropped out. During the campaign she had raised $3,055 and spent $2,049. She was redistricted into the East district and defeated Democratic nominee Carmen Scoles in the 2015 election. She did not run for reelection in the 2017 election and was succeeded by Democratic nominee Richard Deane. She served as Rachel Siegel's campaign manager when Siegel ran for a seat on Burlington's city council.

Carina Driscoll Carina Nicole Driscoll (born 1974) is an American politician who served in the Vermont House of Representatives from Chittenden County from 2001 to 2003, as a member of the Vermont Progressive Party. She also served on the city council in Bur ...

won the endorsement of the Vermont Progressive Party during the 2018 Burlington mayoral election after Colburn nominated Driscoll for the party's endorsement. During the 2019 election she served as Jack Hanson's campaign treasurer for his city council campaign. She served as city councilor Jack Hanson's campaign treasurer during the 2021 election. Colburn endorsed Max Tracy, the Progressive nominee, during the 2021 Burlington mayoral election.

Vermont House of Representatives

Representatives Chris Pearson, a member of the Progressive Party, and Kesha Ram, a member of the Democratic Party, declined to run for reelection to the

in 2016. Colburn ran for a seat in the state house from the Chittenden-6-4 district in the 2018 election with the nominations of the Democratic and Progressive parties and won in the general election alongside Brian Cina. During the campaign she was endorsed by 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 ...

. She and Cina were reelection in the

and 2020 elections. During the 2020 session of the state house Colburn served as assistant chair of the Vermont Progressive Party's caucus in the state house. In 2020, she was selected by an unanimous vote of seven to serve as chair of the Vermont Progressive Party's caucus in the state house while Emma Mulvaney-Stanak was selected to serve as assistant chair. She is the first woman to lead the Vermont Progressive Party's caucus in the state house.

Political positions

Colburn introduced legislation in the state house to make all single occupancy restrooms gender neutral which was passed by the state legislature and signed into law by Governor

Phil Scott Philip Brian Scott (born August 4, 1958) is an American politician, businessman and stock car racer who has served as the 82nd governor of Vermont since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected governor in the 2016 general electi ...

. She introduced legislation in the state house to decriminalize prostitution. The city council voted six to five, with Colburn in favor, in favor of a non-binding resolution encouraging employees of the

Howard Center Howard Center is a Burlington, Vermont-based nonprofit organization that offers professional crisis and counseling services to children and adults; supportive services to individuals with autism and developmental disabilities who need help with ...

to be paid a living wage. The state house voted 89 to 58, with Colburn in favor, in favor of raising the minimum wage and creating a paid family leave program. She and Representatives Diana Gonzalez and Cina wrote an open letter calling for at least twenty percent of Vermont's police budget to be diverted to other services.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colburn, Selene 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Bennington College alumni Living people Democratic Party members of the Vermont House of Representatives Simmons University alumni Vermont Progressive Party politicians Women state legislators in Vermont Year of birth missing (living people)