Terry Bouricius
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Terrill G. Bouricius (born March 27, 1954) is an American politician who served in the Vermont House of Representatives from the Chittenden-7-4 district from 1991 to 2001, 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 his tenure in the state house, he served on the city council in Burlington, Vermont, from 1981 to 1991, from the 2nd district, and served as president of the city council. Bouricius was born in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
, and educated at Middlebury College. He entered politics with his activity in the
Liberty Union Party The Green Mountain Peace and Justice Party, known as the Liberty Union Party (LUP) until 2021, is a political party active in the U.S. state of Vermont. It is a self-proclaimed "non-violent socialist party". The LUP was founded in 1970 by former ...
, where he served as chair of the
Addison County Addison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,363. Its shire town (county seat) is the town of Middlebury. History Iroquois settled in the county before Europeans arrived in 160 ...
affiliate and the statewide party, and ran for a seat in 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 ...
twice with their nomination. He left the Liberty Union Party to aid in the creation of the Citizens Party, and ran for state senate and lieutenant governor. Bouricius was elected to the city council in Burlington, becoming the first member of the Citizens Party elected in the United States. He was an ally to Mayor Bernie Sanders, and served one term as president of the city council. He ran for a seat in the state house in 1986, and lost by six votes to Ben Truman, but later defeated Truman in the 1990 election and served until his retirement in 2000. He and Tom Smith were the first members of the Progressive Coalition elected to the state house.


Early life and education

Terrill G. Bouricius was born in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
on March 27, 1954. He graduated from Middlebury College 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 ...
degree in political science in 1976. He married Catherine Lamb, with whom he had two children.


Career


Early campaigns

Bouricius announced that he would run for a seat in 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 ...
from Addison County with the nomination of the Liberty Union Party during the 1976 election, but placed fifth out of five candidates. Bouricius ran for one of six seats to the state senate from Chittenden County with the Liberty Union Party's nomination, but placed last. During the 1980 election he ran for the Democratic nomination for a seat in the state senate from Chittenden County, but lost in the primary. However, the Citizens Party later gave him their nomination to run, but he placed eighth out of nine candidates. Bouricius served as chair of the
Liberty Union Party The Green Mountain Peace and Justice Party, known as the Liberty Union Party (LUP) until 2021, is a political party active in the U.S. state of Vermont. It is a self-proclaimed "non-violent socialist party". The LUP was founded in 1970 by former ...
in
Addison County Addison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,363. Its shire town (county seat) is the town of Middlebury. History Iroquois settled in the county before Europeans arrived in 160 ...
. Bouricius was selected to serve as chair of the Liberty Union Party after Bernie Sanders left the party in 1977, and served until he was replaced by Jack Craven following his resignation in 1978. In 1980, Earl Gardner, Jame Franco, and Bouricius, who were all former members of the Liberty Union Party, aided in the creation of the Citizens Party in Vermont. Bouricius ran for lieutenant governor in the 1982 election and was endorsed by the party at its state convention. He won the Citizens nomination without opposition, but lost in the election won by
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 ...
nominee
Peter Plympton Smith Peter Plympton Smith (born October 31, 1945) is an American educator and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from the U.S. state of Vermont, the 76th lieutenant governor of Vermont, and an education ...
. He was the Citizens' candidate to receive the most support statewide in the 1982 election, but the party lost major party status, which it had gained after the 1980 election, as none of their statewide candidates received more than 5% of the popular vote.


Local politics


Elections

Bouricius was given the Citizens nomination to run for a seat on the city council in Burlington, Vermont, from the 2nd district in 1981. Marion Fisher, the incumbent Democratic member of the city council, refused to debate Bouricius. Bouricius defeated Fisher in the election becoming the first member of the Citizens Party elected to office in the United States. He won reelection in the 1983 election against Democratic nominee Esther Sorrell, a former member of the state senate, after spending $617 against Sorrell's $641. He won reelection in the 1985 election against Democratic nominee John H. Bartlett Jr. with the nomination of the Progressive Coalition. He won reelection in the 1987 election against Democratic nominee Rick Sharp after raising $1,630, raising $2,088, and having a remaining debt of $458. Bouricius sought reelection to the city council instead of seeking the mayoralty in the 1989 election and defeated Democratic nominee Ian C. Galbraith and Liberty Union nominee Ian Garth Diamondstone. Dana Clark was elected in the 1991 election to succeed Bouricius. Bouricius, Jonathan Leopold, the city treasurer, and
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 ...
, the Community and Economic Development Director, were considered the most likely candidates for the coalition's nomination for the 1989 mayoral election. Gene Bergman, the chair of the coalition, stated that he believed the choices at the caucus would be Leopold, Bouricius, and Clavelle. Bouricius offered his name for consideration, but did not actively campaign for the endorsement of the coalition. Bouricius gave a speech at the caucus giving his support to Clavelle who won the coalition's nomination.


Tenure

Bernie Sanders, who had been endorsed by the Citizens Party, defeated incumbent Democratic Mayor Gordon Paquette by ten votes in the 1981 mayoral election. Following his victory in the 1981 election Sanders faced difficulties with the city council due to eleven of the thirteen members of the board of alderman opposing Sanders. The council would oppose measures proposed by Sanders and override his vetoes on legislation. Bouricius and Sadie White were the only members of the city council aligned with Sanders. After the 1982 elections there were five pro-Sanders members on the thirteen-member city council. However, the Republicans and Democratic members of the city council united to select Robert Paterson, a Republican, as president of the city council instead of Sadie White, a Sanders supporter, by a vote of eight to five after six ballots and to prevent the pro-Sanders members of the city council from receiving positions. The pro-Sanders members gained one seat from the Democratic Party during the 1984 city council elections bringing the composition of the city council to six Progressive members, five Republican members, and two Democratic members. Bouricius was selected to serve as president of the city council after thirty-one ballots and served until 1985. Bouricius was the only member of the Progressive Coalition to serve as president during Sanders' administration. Bouricius announced on December 26, 1984, that he would see reelection to the city council and that he would seek another term as president. After the 1985 elections William Skelton, a Republican member of the city council, was selected to serve as president of the city council against the Progressive-backed Zoe Breiner as Bouricius had dropped out. During his tenure on the city council Bouricius served as chair of the Civil Defense committee. He was selected to serve on the executive committee of the Progressive Coalition in 1988. Bouricius worked as Sanders' treasurer for his campaign for a seat in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
in the 1988 election.


Vermont House of Representatives


Elections

On June 25, 1986, Bouricius announced that he would run for a seat in the Vermont House of Representatives from the Chittenden 7-4 district to succeed Democratic Representative
Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 200 ...
. He ran as an
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 ...
candidate, but was defeated by Democratic nominee Ben Truman by one vote. Bouricius filed for a recount no November 8, but Truman's victory was increased to six votes by the recount. He requested for a new election to be held, but Judge Matthew Katz rejected the request. Bouricius announced that he would run for a seat in the state house in the 1990 election against incumbent Representative Truman. During the campaign Bouricius had been endorsed by Sanders, the Vermont Progressive Alliance, and the Rainbow Coalition. Bouricius defeated Truman in the election. Bouricius and Tom Smith were the first members of the Progressive Coalition elected to the state house and the first members of a third-party elected to the state legislature in seventy-four years. He won reelection without opposition in the 1992, 1996, and 1998 elections. He defeated Democratic nominee Thomas C. Nuovo in the 1994 election. Bouricius did not run for reelection to the state house in the 2000 election and was succeeded by Progressive nominee
Carina Driscoll Carina Nicole Driscoll (born 1974) is an American politician who served in the Vermont House of Representatives from Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County from 2001 to 2003, as a member of the Vermont Progressive Party. She also served o ...
.


Tenure

Bouricius supported Ralph G. Wright for
Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...
in 1991. During his tenure in the state house Bouricius served on the Commerce, Ways and Means, and Agriculture committees, but he stated that he was placed on the Agriculture committee as punishment for trying to get other Progressives elected.


Later life

During the 2002 gubernatorial election Bouricius supported Progressive nominee Michael Badamo. He became a policy analyst for
FairVote FairVote, formerly the Center for Voting and Democracy, is a 501(c)(3) organization that advocates electoral reform in the United States. Founded in 1992 as Citizens for Proportional Representation to support the implementation of proportional r ...
. He endorsed David Zuckerman for lieutenant governor during the 2016 election. During the 2019 elections he supported Perri Freeman for a seat on the Burlington city council.


Political positions

In 1992, Bouricius sponsored legislation to increase the minimum wage in Vermont from $4.25 to $5.50. Bouricius supported legislation to ban smoking in public areas in 1993. He supported the creation of a
single-payer healthcare Single-payer healthcare is a type of universal healthcare in which the costs of essential healthcare for all residents are covered by a single public system (hence "single-payer"). Single-payer systems may contract for healthcare services from ...
system. In 2000, the state house voted seventy-six to sixty-nine, with Bouricius in favor, in favor of legislation to allow same-sex couples to have marriage benefits through
civil unions A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
.


Foreign policy

Fergus O'Hare, a civil rights activist from
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, asked for members of the city council to introduce a resolution calling for the British government to give prisoners in the H-Block wing of the Maze Prison political status. Bouricius introduced the resolution for O'Hare. In 1983, the city council voted eight to five, with Bouricius in favor, against a resolution protesting the
United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...
's decision to ban Soviet diplomats, journalists, and businessmen from entering Chittenden County. Bouricius opposed President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
's decision to implement an embargo against
Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...
. Bouricius criticized President
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
's plan to send $3 million to anti-
Sandinista National Liberation Front The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a Socialism, socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after ...
candidates in Nicaragua's 1990 elections.


Government

Bouricius proposed a change to Burlington's city charter which would have changed the Board of Aldermen to the gender-neutral city council which the city council voted nine to four in favor of the legislation and was approved by a referendum. He supported the abolition of 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 ...
.


Electoral history


References


Bibliography

*(2013) Democracy through Multi-body Sortitio

*(2013) An Idealized Design for the Legislative Branch of Governmen

*(2014) An Idealized Design for Governmen

*(2018) Why Hybrid Bicameralism is Not Right for Sortitio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouricius, Terry 1954 births 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians American political scientists Living people Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont Progressive Party politicians