House Rep Briglin won’t seek reelection

State Representative Tim Briglin, one of two State Reps representing Norwich, Sharon, Strafford, and Thetford in Montpelier, will not seek reelection when his term expires at year-end. He made the announcement in a May 12 listserv post. See below for text. Mr. Briglin was first elected to the General Assembly in 2014. He is the Chair of the House Energy and Technology Committee, holding that position since 2019. He also serves on the Joint Fiscal Committee.

According to a May 16 VTDigger article by Riley Robinson, it became “untenable [for Briglin] to balance his day job, running an investment firm, with the Legislature” It “remains extremely challenging for working Vermonters and parents to serve in public office,” the article reports.

According to the Vermont Political Observer blog (no relation to this blog) by John Walters, half of the Committee chairs in the House are retiring. That is a significant loss of leadership and knowledge.

An announcement, with gratitude

In his listserv post, Mr. Briglin said:

With deep gratitude for your support and encouragement, I am announcing today that I will not seek re-election for another term to the Vermont House.  

It has been an extraordinary honor to represent these four towns over the past eight years.   The communities of Sharon, Thetford, Norwich, and Strafford, each with their own distinctions, share a common virtue in their deep-seated commitment to a strong civil society.  That strength, manifested in our well-supported schools and vibrant community organizations, our robust town meetings and engaged energy committees, and in multi-generational historical societies and well-loved public spaces, makes being a public servant all the more rewarding.  It is demonstrated in the way we look out for one another, support our neighbors, respect our environment, and speak out for what we believe in.  When asked in Montpelier who I am there representing, I am so proud to cite our communities and speak of you.

Through my four terms, I have benefitted tremendously from the well-informed citizenry of our towns.  I can always count on an email or phone call from an informed and passionate constituent; the conversations we’ve had have helped me to better understand an issue or flag a concern yet to be considered in a debate.  Thank you for your engagement.

If it’s true that 80% of life is just showing up, perhaps the other 20% is knowing when to move on.  While this was never meant to be a career for me, serving our four towns in the state legislature has been a labor of love.  It has been the honor of a lifetime, and when my term expires at the end of the year, I look forward to continuing to support our communities closer to home.

Take good care,

Tim