2004 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont

2004 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont's at-large district

←  2002 November 2, 2004 2006  →

Nominee Bernie Sanders Greg Parke Larry Drown Party Independent Republican Democratic Popular vote 205,774 74,271 21,684 Percentage 67.5% 24.4% 7.1%

County results Municipality results Sanders:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90% Parke:     40–50%     50–60%

U.S. Representative before election Bernie Sanders Independent Elected U.S. Representative Bernie Sanders Independent

The 2004 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004, 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.

Incumbent Independent Bernie Sanders won re-election to his eighth and final term in the House of Representatives, defeating Republican Greg Parke and Democrat Larry Drown. Sanders would run for and be elected to the United States Senate in 2006, a seat he still holds today.

As of 2024, this is the last time someone who was not a member of the Democratic or Republican party was elected to the House of Representatives.

General election

Candidates

• Larry Drown ^[1] (Democratic)
• Jane Newton ^[1] (Liberty Union)
• Gregory "Greg" Tarl Parke, former United States Air Force lieutenant colonel ^[2] (Republican)
• Bernie Sanders, incumbent U.S. Representative ^[3] (Independent)

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report [4]	Safe I	October 29, 2004
Sabato's Crystal Ball [5]	Safe I	November 1, 2004

Controversy

On Friday, October 29, 2004, the Parke campaign aired a radio ad which portrayed Sanders as being on friendly terms with pornographers, pedophiles, illegal immigrations and terrorists. The ad was pulled the same day that it first aired. Parke was criticized for his actions by both the state chairman of the Vermont Republican Party James Barnett and Vermont Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie, as well as by other Vermont Republicans. ^[6]

Parke had earlier blamed Sanders for the September 11 terrorist attacks based on Sanders's prior vote to cut the intelligence budget. ^[2]

Results

Sanders won every county and carried all but two municipalities in the state, with Parke winning the towns of Stratton and Granby.

Vermont's at-large congressional district election, 2004 ^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	Bernie Sanders (incumbent)	205,774	67.46
	Republican	Greg Parke	74,271	24.35
	Democratic	Larry Drown	21,684	7.11
	Liberty Union	Jane Newton	3,018	0.99
	Write-ins	N/A	261	0.09
Total votes			305,008	100.00
	Independent hold

References

1. "Official Report of the Canvassing Committee - United States and Vermont Statewide Offices General Election, November 2, 2004" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 30, 2012.
2. Delaney, Steve. "August 31, 2004 – Midday Report". Vermont Public Radio . Retrieved April 15, 2004.
3. Pertman, Adam (November 11, 1990). "'The Times Caught Up' to Vermont Socialist". The Boston Globe. p. 83. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved April 15, 2012.
4. "2004 Competitive House Race Chart" (PDF). House: Race Ratings. Cook Political Report. October 29, 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 10, 2006. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
5. "2004 House". Sabato's Crystal Ball. November 3, 2004. Archived from the original on November 11, 2004. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
6. Marx, Claude R. (October 30, 2004). "Parke targets Sanders, then pulls the ad". The Barre Montpelier Times Argus . Vermont Press Bureau. Archived from the original on December 4, 2004. Retrieved April 15, 2012.