Phil Scott Biography - 82nd Governor of Vermont,

Phil Scott is the current Governor of Vermont, a north-eastern US state. He assumed office on January 5, 2017 alongside Lieutenant Governor David Zuckerman as the successor of Peter Shumlin. Previously, Scott was Lieutenant Governor of Vermont (2011 – 2017) and a member of the Vermont Senate from the Washington District (2001 – 2011).

Early Life and Education

On August 4, 1958, Phil Scott was born to his native residents of Vermont. Raised in Barre City, he went to Spaulding High School and later joined the University of Vermont for an undergraduate degree in industrial education.

Personal Life

Phil Scott is married to Diana McTeague with two children.

Career

Business

Graduating from Spaulding High School in 1976, Phil Scott started working at his uncle’s construction company called DuBois Construction. On return from the university education, Scott again joined DuBois Construction and subsequently worked his way towards owning a certain share of the company with his cousin. The company suffered a heavy loss after 2012 fire. Anyway, the owners were able to recover and are completely operational now. Before taking Governor’s office in 2017, Scott sold his shares in DuBois Construction for a reported $2.5 million in order to avoid any conflict of interest.

Racing

Scott was heavily involved in stock car racing after the mid-1990s – in fact, he was a champion. As of 1996 and 1998, he was a Thunder Road Late Model Series Champion. Likewise, Scott also grabbed his Thunder Road Milk Bowls in 1997 and 1999. Moreover, Scott won Thunder Road and Airborne Late Model Series and American Canadian Tour in 2002. As of 2005, he was also a participant at British Stock Car Association Formula One.

Politics

Phil Scott entered the American politics as a Republican by running in the 2000 Washington County Senate District General Election. Unfortunately, he lost the election by 2000 votes. Subsequently, he gave another shot for the same seat in 2002 election. Although Scott managed to gain the Republican nomination, he was left behind in the general election by Ann Cummings and Bill Doyle. The same kind of defeat held Scott in 2004 and 2006 as well. He always came third, although the winning margin was decreasing rapidly. In 2008, Phil Scott decided to go for another try. Unbelievably, he won a very tight election against his long-time rivals Ann Cummings and Bill Doyle with 15,763 – 15291 – 15089 margin.

Phil Scott served a term in Senator’s office and joined the 2010 Vermont Lieutenant Governor Republican Party Primary Election. He gained the party nomination against Mark Snelling with 56.1% votes. In the general election, Scott defeated Democrat Howard with 49.4% – 42.5% margin. In 2014, Phil Scott again bade for Lieutenant Governor’s position and subsequently had a landslide victory with 62.2% votes in hand. As no Democrat was a candidate, Progressive Party candidate Dean Corren lost with 36.1% votes.

With an end to Peter Shumlin’s Governorship, Phill Scott ran for the 2016 Vermont Republican Party Gubernatorial Primary Elections. Against Bruce Lisman, he won 60.5% votes i.e. 27, 699 in number. As he gained the nomination for general election, Scott defeated Democrat Sue Minter and Liberty Union’s Bill Lee with 52.9% – 44.2% – 2.8% margin. Phil Scott assumed office on January 5, 2017 alongside Lieutenant Governor David Zuckerman.

As Governor, Phil Scott is focused on fixing fiscal and budgetary issues by going for balanced budget policies and economic development via streamlined business permits, growth incentives, and massive job creation. Likewise, Scott is aiming to bring about an inclusive development in Vermont via his newly formulate plan ‘Comprehensive Blueprint for Economic Growth’. Likewise, he has promised for an increase in investment on education, job training, and vocational education.

Donald Trump and Phil Scott

Although both Governor Scott and President Donald Trump represent the same party, they differ on their stands. Scott has vowed to fight Trump’s executive order on immigration and travel ban. He said, “Vermont will continue to uphold the laws of our state and nation, but we will not be forced to take any action that we believe violates Constitutional rights, or infringes upon the rights of Vermont as a sovereign state.”