Debbie Ingram (born 1962) is an American politician, who served in the Vermont Senate from 2017 to 2021.[1] She lost her 2020 bid for Lieutenant Governor of Vermont.[2][3]
Ingram's 2020 campaign website for Lieutenant Governor articulated the following goals: bringing people together, rebuilding the economy, advancing social justice, making housing affordable, lowering the cost of health care, and combating climate change.[9]
In 2020, the LGBTQ Victory Fund listed Ingram as a "game changer" because, if she had won her campaign for Lieutenant Governor, she would have been the first openly LGBTQ statewide elected official in Vermont.[10] Ingram was also endorsed by the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance.[11]
Political career
A member of the Williston Selectboard, Ingram first ran for election to the state senate in 2012.[5] She was not elected that year, but won election when she ran again in 2016.[12]
Ingram serves as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, and as Clerk of the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare.[4] She also serves on the Vermont Child Poverty Council.[4]
In the Senate, Ingram's legislative priorities have included a comprehensive substance misuse program, expansion of child care, and increasing funding for mental health services.[13] She has also championed greater inclusion of ethnic and social minorities in school curricula and Vermont's celebration of Indigenous Peoples' Day.[13] Ingram has also introduced legislation to mandate more training on the appropriate use of force by law enforcement.[14]
In 2017, she was charged with driving under the influence after crashing her car.[15] She pled guilty, acknowledging that she has the disease of alcoholism.[16] She has been back in recovery ever since.
She was reelected to another senate term in 2018.[17]
Ingram also served for six years on the Williston Planning Commission and six years on the Williston Selectboard.[3]
