2018 United States Senate election in Vermont

The 2018 United States Senate election in Vermont was held November 6, 2018, alongside a gubernatorial election, U.S. House election, and other state and local elections. Incumbent independent Senator Bernie Sanders won re-election to a third term, defeating Republican nominee Lawrence Zupan. The primaries were held on August 14. This was one of two independent-held Senate seats up for election in a state that Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election.

Background
Two-term independent Senator Bernie Sanders was re-elected with 71% of the vote in 2012. Sanders, a candidate for president in the 2016 primary election and one of only three independent members of Congress, is a self-described democratic socialist.

Sanders has caucused with the Democratic Party since taking office in 2007, and he is the Chairman of the Budget Committee. He was 77 years old in 2018. Sanders ran for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. After failing to win the nomination, he announced that he would run for re-election for his Senate seat in 2018.

Candidates

 * Brad Peacock, farmer
 * Bernie Sanders, incumbent U.S. Senator (caucuses with Democrats)

Nominee

 * Bernie Sanders, incumbent U.S. Senator (declined nomination)

Eliminated in primary

 * Folasade Adeluola, activist

Not on ballot

 * Jon Svitavsky, homelessness activist

Withdrawn

 * Al Giordano, journalist

Results
[[File:2018 VT US Senate Democratic primary.svg|thumb|200px|Results by county Map legend

{{legend|#333333|Sanders—≥90%}}

{{legend|#4d4d4d|Sanders—80–90%}} ]]

Nominee

 * Lawrence Zupan, real estate broker

Withdrew nomination

 * H. Brooke Paige, former CEO of Remmington News Service

Eliminated in primary

 * Rocky De La Fuente, businessman
 * Jasdeep Pannu, attorney

Did not file

 * John MacGovern, former Massachusetts State Representative and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2012
 * Scott Milne, businessman, nominee for governor in 2014 and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2016

Results
[[File:2018 VT US Senate Republican primary.svg|thumb|200px|Results by county Map legend

{{legend|#d35f5f|Paige—50–60%}}

{{legend|#de8787|Paige—40–50%}}

{{legend|#e9afaf|Paige—30–40%}}

{{legend|#afe9af|Zupan—30–40%}}

{{legend|#87de87|Zupan—40–50%}}

{{legend|#5fd35f|Zupan—50–60%}}

{{legend|#37c837|Zupan—60–70%}} ]]

Post-primary
H. Brooke Paige, who also won the Republican nominations for U.S. House, state Attorney General, state Secretary of State, state Treasurer, and state Auditor, withdrew from all but the secretary of state race on August 24, in order to allow the Vermont Republican Party to name replacement candidates. The Vermont Republican Party picked Lawrence Zupan, who came in 2nd place in the primary, to be the Republican nominee.

Predictions
* Highest rating given

Results
Sanders won re-election with 67.4% of the vote against eight other candidates.