Denise MacMartin
Denise MacMartin (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Vermont House of Representatives to represent Washington-1 District. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Elections
2020
See also: Vermont House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Incumbent Anne Donahue and incumbent Kenneth Goslant defeated Denise MacMartin, Robert Lehmert, and Gordon Bock in the general election for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Anne Donahue (R) | 32.4 | 2,225 |
| ✔ | Kenneth Goslant (R) | 27.5 | 1,891 | |
 | Denise MacMartin (D) | 22.2 | 1,529 | |
 | Robert Lehmert (D)  | 14.1 | 966 | |
| Gordon Bock (Berlin-Northfield Alliance Party) | 3.7 | 251 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 13 | ||
| Total votes: 6,875 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Denise MacMartin and Robert Lehmert defeated Gordon Bock in the Democratic primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on August 11, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Denise MacMartin | 50.5 | 747 |
| ✔ | | Robert Lehmert | 27.8 | 411 |
| Gordon Bock | 18.5 | 273 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.2 | 47 | ||
| Total votes: 1,478 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Incumbent Anne Donahue and incumbent Kenneth Goslant advanced from the Republican primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on August 11, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Anne Donahue | 50.9 | 685 |
| ✔ | Kenneth Goslant | 48.3 | 650 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.8 | 11 | ||
| Total votes: 1,346 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
General election
General election for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Anne Donahue (R) | 28.8 | 1,587 |
| ✔ | Kenneth Goslant (R) | 24.0 | 1,324 | |
| Denise MacMartin (D) | 22.3 | 1,227 | |
 | Jeremy Hansen (Vermont Progressive Party) | 19.7 | 1,085 | |
| Rebecca Trower (Independent) | 3.0 | 164 | ||
| Gordon Bock (Berlin-Northfield Alliance Party) | 2.2 | 119 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 3 | ||
| Total votes: 5,509 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Denise MacMartin defeated John Stevens and Gordon Bock in the Democratic primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Denise MacMartin | 55.0 | 415 |
| John Stevens | 34.2 | 258 | ||
| Gordon Bock | 10.9 | 82 | ||
| Total votes: 755 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Incumbent Anne Donahue and Kenneth Goslant advanced from the Republican primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Anne Donahue | 51.7 | 483 |
| ✔ | Kenneth Goslant | 48.3 | 452 | |
| Total votes: 935 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Vermont Progressive Party primary election
Vermont Progressive Party primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District (2 seats)
Jeremy Hansen advanced from the Vermont Progressive Party primary for Vermont House of Representatives Washington 1 District on August 14, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jeremy Hansen | 100.0 | 394 |
| Total votes: 394 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Denise MacMartin did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Denise MacMartin completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by MacMartin's responses.
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
My top three priorities are: accessible and affordable childcare, student loan debt relief, and raising the minimum wage.
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?
I am personally passionate about public participation in our institutions of government. When citizens do not participate we risk making uninformed decisions.
What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?
I have a strong record of building consensus, respect for different opinions, and a desire to solve problems. In terms of legislative office, I have served in leadership roles in critical operations where I made and revised policy, developed procedures, and worked with complex federal and state regulations. I am able to compromise when necessary, and I understand the importance of implementing immediate measures while working on long-term solutions. I understand that there is more than one right way to do things, and I am open to exploring approaches that at first seem unconventional.
What was your very first job? How long did you have it?
As a teenager I regularly babysat and during summers I picked berries on nearby berry farms. Both of these were typical ways for young people to earn money when and where I was growing up. My first "real" job was in Ladies Wear at a chain department store when I was a freshman in college. I worked there for about a year, part-time, while attending school full-time.
What is your favorite book? Why?
My favorite book is "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak. Although it is fiction, it is a powerful story of how average families in Germany faced the devastation of WWII. I found it interesting to have Death as the narrator, and the writing is moving and memorable. The underlying theme of the power of words is an important message for us all to remember.
What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?
Attracting businesses that pay a living wage, preserving our natural beauty, cultivating our tourism and farming industries, avoiding increases in taxes and fees, maintaining the quality of our public schools, and keeping a strong safety net in place can all seem in competition for political and policy attention. We need to work on many issues simultaneously and this effort requires creative and flexible thinking ? seeing how issues are interconnected and seeking out new uses for existing resources.
Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.
In the legislature as in any work setting, it is important to build relationships with others. Having goodwill and trust allows for civil discussion of differences, and being mindful of relationships helps everyone remember that we are ultimately working towards the same goals.
Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?
I am not interested in running for a different office in the future. I see the role of State Representative as the office that is closest to constituents and that has appeal to me. I want to serve to the best of my ability, and I hope to encourage younger community members to become involved and prepared to step forward in the future.
Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?
One of the most memorable stories I have heard on the campaign trail is from the woman trying to care for her failing, elderly father. She was having difficulty finding consistent, qualified home health workers, she was frustrated by the confusing maze of resources that overlapped but left gaps in filling needs. She was concerned about her continued ability to care for her father, but saw few affordable solutions. But what struck me most was her honesty about how she had never expected to be in this situation and her new understanding of how vulnerable we all are to the unexpected twists and turns life can take.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
