Vermont State Senator Resigns Over Role in Leaked Young Republican Group Chat

The resignation follows Vermont Gov. Phil Scott’s call to step down and broader backlash over controversial remarks.

The Telegram app logo is seen on a smartphone in this picture illustration taken Sept. 15, 2017. Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

A Vermont state senator has resigned following public criticism over his participation in a private Young Republican group chat that contained racist, anti-Semitic, and other offensive remarks, becoming the highest-profile elected official to step down in the widening fallout from the scandal.

Sen. Sam Douglass, a first-term Republican representing a district near the Canadian border, said in an Oct. 17 resignation letter that he will leave office at noon on Monday, citing both pressure from party leaders and threats to his family after the leak of more than 2,900 pages of Telegram messages published by Politico.

“If my Governor asks me to do something, I will act, because I believe in what he’s trying to do for the state of Vermont,” Douglass wrote. “I know that this decision will upset many, and delight others, but in this political climate I must keep my family safe.”

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a fellow Republican, had publicly called for Douglass to step down, following reports that the senator participated in exchanges that mocked minorities and made derogatory remarks.

“The hateful statements made in this group chat are disgusting and unacceptable,” Scott said. “Those involved should resign from their roles immediately and leave the Republican party.”

Douglass was the only elected official identified in the chat, though several other participants held government posts or worked for senior GOP officials, including aides to the New York Senate minority leader, the Kansas attorney general, and a former Trump administration official.

At least six individuals have since lost their jobs, including Peter Giunta, chief of staff to New York Assemblyman Michael Reilly. Giunta was terminated after allegedly writing “I love Hitler” and referencing a “gas chamber” as punishment in an internal leadership contest. Giunta apologized for “insensitive and inexcusable language,” though he said that the authenticity of all messages could not be verified and that he was “deeply concerned that the message logs in question may have been deceptively doctored.”

In his resignation statement, Douglass described receiving a torrent of personal attacks and threats since the story broke, some directed at his wife and newborn child.

“We just had a baby ... I have received some of the most horrific hate one could imagine,” he wrote, citing messages calling for harm against his family.

He also noted efforts to reach out privately to Jewish and minority colleagues. “I know that as a young person I have a duty to set a good example for others,” he said.

Douglass, who chaired the Vermont Young Republicans and had recently toured the state promoting substance abuse recovery efforts, said he remains proud of his legislative work, including passing an agriculture bill in his first term and beginning welfare reform initiatives.

The Vermont legislature will now begin the process of filling the vacancy after his resignation.