As of press time, Governor-elect-apparent Jim Douglas had not yet responded to a formal letter from gay and lesbian community liaisons Keith Goslant and Virginia Renfrew requesting official recognition.
      Goslant sent the letter in early December, as Douglas was appointing his administration’s cabinet members and advisors.
      OITM’s Paul Olsen asked Douglas in a pre-election interview (September, 2002, p. 8) whether he would “maintain a relationship with Vermont’s gay and lesbian community through an official liaison.” Douglas said he “hadn’t thought about that.” Further, Douglas said, “I guess the question is broader about liaisons to other communities or organizations. I guess I don’t know the answer to that right now.”
      There has been no indication that Douglas would recognize the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community’s liaisons, given the tenor of his answers during the interview. Most of his answers suggested that he hadn’t thought about the issues raised or, when pushed, that he would not treat gay and lesbian Vermonters any differently from other Vermonters.
      Because no candidate received 50 percent of the vote in the general election, Douglas will become the governor if the legislature elects him in a secret ballot. The vote is considered a foregone conclusion because Democrat Doug Racine conceded the election and honored his own pledge to abide by the voters’ choice of the candidate with the higher vote total. Ironically, the state legislature is nearly evenly divided, with 69 Democrats, four Progressives, three Independents, and 74 Republicans in the House, and 19 Democrats and 11 Republicans in the Senate.
      If all of the Democrats and just three of the Progressives and Independents voted for Racine, the candidate with a strong record of support for the gay and lesbian community’s legislative concerns could still have become governor.
     Meanwhile, Goslant and Renfrew await the Governor-elect-apparent’s response.