[Effortpost] 14 Year Old Middle School Student from Marshall, Minnesota Suspends Campaign for Vermont Secretary of State

Tl;dr Vermont election laws are wack

• There are no minimum age requirements - in 2018 a 13 year old ran for Governor.

• Sheriffs and constables are elected, and there's no minimum age requirement or requirement that you be a police officer or pass a criminal background check

• VT is one of four states that doesn't require lawyers to go to law school - can "read the law" where you work for a lawyer for four years and then take the bar

• Prosecutors aren't even required to pass the bar. Anyone can run for State's Attorney even without being a lawyer.

• Felons can vote from jail or even run for office

• Several offices, including Secretary of State, don't have a residency requirement. So you don't have to live here to run for office

Here's the sec of state candidate from Minnesota (who is no longer running, guess he got grounded or something lmao)

https://ballotpedia.org/Wyatt_Pohlen

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to my mom. She’s raised me and my siblings. We don’t have much. She works 2 jobs. She gets us what we need. She keeps a roof over our head. She’s there when I need a smile. When I have a question. When I just need someone to talk to. She’s there. She’s why I’m running. We need someone who gets struggling families. A real middle class champion. A kid who’s dreams are huge. A kid that won’t forget about people that don’t have much. That’s why I’m running.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am a compassionate person. I am a peoples person. If you want to have a discussion. I’d love to. Because that’s what’s good in this country. You can find someone that you like. Someone you support. Someone you can get behind. I am very straightforward. I don’t sugar coat things. I want to show people can trust politicians. They don’t have to be seen as liers for money.

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

It licenses notary public. It’s a important thing to have notary public’s and the program is something I will greatly miss increase awareness if elected.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The biggest event of my life I can remember is Sandy Hook. I was only 5 and confused. On what happened to those children. After I’ve learned all these years I was disgusted. How could someone take the precious life of a child who could barley tie their shoe. How can you not try and stop this with common sense gun control. This is why I’m a big proponent of gun control.

Good luck with that

Vermont, for over 220 years, has never had permits, has never had registration, and has never had any serious gun control laws [...]

The Vermont city of Rutland instituted an ordinance prohibiting the carrying of weapons “without permission of the mayor or chief of police, in writing.” [...]

The [Vermont Supreme Court’s] response was unanimous and definitive: Rutland’s ordinance was ruled “repugnant to the Constitution and the laws of the state"