MONTPELIER, Vt. -
It's the first day to file petitions if you're running for elected office in Vermont.
With 1,028 signatures in tow, Sen. Randy Brock, a Republican running for governor, became the first candidate to file a petition for the 2012 election.
"It shows the campaign is heating up and we're ready to move forward. We have all the signatures we need -- in fact more than double what we need. The consent form has been filed, so the campaign is full steam ahead," Brock said.
"He may not say this on the record but Randy Brock needs to do things to get his name in the news, he needs to build up his name recognition," said Political Analyst, Eric Davis. Davis says Brock's decision to invite cameras and be the first candidate to file was a smart one. He's currently polling more than thirty percentage points behind the governor according to a recent Castleton College poll.
"If Randy Brock can narrow that gap by half and get it to say 15 points behind the governor by Labor Day, then we can have a competitive race. It'll be hard to win, but then we'd have a competitive race," Davis said.
As for Governor Shumlin? He had no comment Tuesday. The governor's office says he's focused on being the governor rather than statewide campaigns. Davis says this is to be expected of an incumbent. Candidates have until June 14th to file. "Shumlin will file on the last day. He will say, I'm too busy being governor to campaign and he will run a very low key campaign until Labor Day," he said.
Davis says this incumbent mentality has worked well in the past. He advises both of them to stay away from negativity. He says Brian Dubie's campaign in 2010 showed that negativity gets you nowhere in Vermont.
