Wayne Bennett admits things are “progressing slowly” as he tries to build an NRL team from scratch to compete in the elite competition next year.
The Dolphins will enter the league ahead of the 2023 season and supercoach Bennett is charged with compiling a 30-man roster strong enough to compete with the best in the business.
With just three months until Bennett will want to kick off pre-season training with his players, the Dolphins have signed only 19 to the top squad, supplemented by a number of development contracts.
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The Dolphins look fairly stocked for experienced forwards, with the likes of Jesse Bromwich, Felise Kaufusi, and Kenny Bromwich committed to the expansion team. But the current list lacks genuine star power.
Bennett has been knocked back by a host of rugby league superstars, including Kalyn Ponga, Reece Walsh, Brandon Smith, and – for the time being, at least – Cameron Munster.
Wayne Bennett. (Getty)
There’s been calls for the governing body to step in and either help the Dolphins sign a marquee player, or delay their introduction into the league.
“(Recruitment is) progressing slowly,” Bennett said on Monday.
“I’m pretty happy with where we’re at. We don’t totally have all the players that we want, but we know what we’re doing and we’re slowing building.
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“We have 19 players contracted at the moment – plus a few trainees and that – we still have good options out there, we’ve just got to make the right decisions.
“We want to have a competitive team next year, and at the same time we want to have a load of young players coming through over the next four or fives years who will go on to be wonderful players.
“What we’ve paid for the players has been good value for them and good value for us, and we have got a fair bit left in the cap to get those players we are looking for.
Cameron Munster of the Storm has knocked back Wayne Bennett’s advances. (Getty)
“We won’t have that excuse that we can’t afford that bloke, if he is the right bloke.”
Bennett has ruffled plenty of feathers in the NRL over his pursuit of a marquee player, who the Dolphins could pay as much as $1.5 million – more than $200,000 more than the highest annual salary ever paid to a player in Australia.
Knights legend Andrew Johns threw verbal barbs at Bennett for flying to Sydney to meet with Ponga. Melbourne lodged a complaint with the NRL over Bennett’s repeated attempts to lure Munster away from the Storm, while the Dolphins and Warriors got in a stink over Walsh’s decision to join the Broncos instead of Bennett’s side.
The legendary coach has been criticized for failing to recruit a marquee star to date.
Bennett explained why certain players haven’t been keen on accepting his advances.
“It’s the unknown for the players, is the issue,” he said.
“The players I’ve been most keen on are the ones who have been asking who they’re going to play with. The ones I worry about want to know who else is playing with them.
“That’s the unknown. When I took the position here we had no players, so I’m confident enough with what I can do, and I want them to trust the fact we can build a good team here.”
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The backstories and controversies that have ignited feuds involving athletes
The US Navy has recovered an F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter jet from the Mediterranean Sea.
It was recovered from a depth of around 9,500 feet using a remotely controlled vehicle.
Last month, the aircraft blew off the USS Harry S. Truman during “unexpected heavy weather.”
The US Navy said Monday that it recently recovered a sunken F/A-18E Super Hornet that blew off the deck of an aircraft carrier and into the Mediterranean Sea last month.
The Navy said in a statement that it “successfully recovered” the aircraft last week from a depth of around 9,500 feet.
A team aboard the multi-purpose construction ship Everest used a remote-operated vehicle to attach rigging and lift lines to the jet before using a lifting hook to fish the aircraft from the water and onto the Everest, the Navy said.
“Our task tailored team operated safely and efficiently to meet the timeline. The search and recovery took less than 24 hours, a true testament to the team’s dedication and capability,” Lt. Cmdr. Miguel Lewis, a Sixth Fleet salvage officer who helped recover the aircraft, said in the statement.
The jet blew overboard the USS Harry S. Truman in early July because of “unexpected heavy weather” in the Mediterranean, the Navy said at the time. The carrier was in the middle of a replenishment-at-sea when the plane blew off the deck. One sailor suffered minor injuries but has since recovered.
The incident sparked an investigation, as it was not immediately clear how bad weather was able to toss the heavy aircraft into the sea. Since its recovery, the jet has been sent to a nearby military installation where it will be delivered to the US.
The Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornets serve as the main carrier-based fighter jets, though the sea service has begun outfitting some carrier air wings with newer, fifth-generation F-35Cs.
This incident in which an F/A-18 blew overboard marks the third time in less than a year a Western navy has lost a carrier-based fighter to the sea and been forced to deploy additional assets to recover it.
In November last year, a British pilot operating off the UK carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth ditched an F-35B in the Mediterranean, and in January, a US Navy pilot danced out of an F-35C as the strike fighter crashed on the deck of the carrier USS Carl Vinson and slid off into the South China Sea.
Yes, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has certainly bounced 9% over the past seven weeks.
But due to the ugly drops in the first half of this year, there are still plenty of tempting bargains out there if you know where to look.
Here is a pair of such ASX shares to buy right now, as suggested by Medallion Financial Group advisor Stuart Bromley.
‘Significant discount’ for software company
Kiwi software provider Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) watched in horror over the first half of 2022 as its share price halved.
However, like many growth stocks, it has raised the past few weeks to be more than 22% up over July and August.
But that still means it is down 35.8% for the year so far.
For Bromley, this means there’s still a buying opportunity for Xero.
“The stock is trading at a significant discount to prior highs,” he told The Bull.
“This accounting software provider was sold down in the past six months, along with many other stocks in the technology sector.”
Bromley reminded investors that customers “tend to stick” with Xero once they have switched over, which is understandable for accounting software.
Small businesses don’t have the appetite to constantly spend time and money to convert their books over to a different system. Big companies don’t either, to be frank.
“Xero has more than 3 million subscribers and continues to build momentum,” said Bromley.
“We like the business, as it’s capital light and scalable.”
The Motley Fool reported over the weekend that Goldman Sachs also believes in the “stickiness” of Xero’s software.
“The broker has a buy rating and $113.00 price target on Xero’s shares,” wrote James Mickleboro.
That makes it 20% upside from the current level.
Upside for when the economy improves
Unlike Xero, Aeris Resources Ltd (ASX: AIS) shares haven’t even had a second-half revival.
All up it’s now worse than half the valuation at the start of this year.
But Bromley likes the look of Aeris Resourcesnow that investment company Washington H Soul Pattinson and Co Ltd (ASX: SOL) is entangled in its affairs.
“This copper and gold miner recently acquired Round Oak Minerals from Washington H Soul Pattinson. The transaction allays fears about AIS mine life, in our view,” he said.
“Washington H Soul Pattinson becomes the biggest shareholder in Aeris, which is positive.”
Aeris produces copper, which dips in price when the outlook for the economy is negative.
“We expect the Aeris share price to recover when copper prices rise and the economy improves,” said Bromley.
“More upside potential exists if the company delivers positive exploration results.”
The Hisense U8G was one of our favorite TVs of 2021 thanks to its fantastic picture quality and strong list of features for a reasonable price. Its successor, the Hisense U8H, is even more impressive, with wider color and higher contrast. It’s otherwise similar to the U8G, so you shouldn’t feel pressured to upgrade from last year’s model, but if you’re shopping for a new TV, the U8H is one of the best values available today. As far as cost, Hisense specifies both a suggested retail price of $1,399.99 and an “everyday” price of $999.99 for the 65-inch version of the U8H we tested to make it seem like the TV is perpetually on sale. Amazon is selling the TV for the higher suggested price at launch, but might drop to the “everyday” price over time as more units reach retail channels. Either way, the U8H is an excellent value, and worthy of our Editors’ Choice award.
A Simple, Familiar Design
The U8H uses an increasingly common TV design, in which a thin metallic band runs along the sides and across the top of the screen, while a wider, brushed metallic strip serves as the bottom bezel. It’s a simple, classy look that the Hisense U6H, the Vizio M50QXM-K01, and a variety of other TVs share. The bottom bezel sports a chrome Hisense logo in the middle, a trapezoidal protrusion for the infrared sensor, a power button, Google Assistant indicator lights, and a far-field microphone array complete with a mute switch. The TV stands on two long, thin metal feet and has standard VESA screw holes for wall mounting.
The power cable plugs into a port on the right side of the rear panel, but all other connections are situated on the left side. Four HDMI ports (one eARC, two 4K120), a USB-A port, a 3.5mm composite video input, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and an antenna/cable connector face left, while an optical audio output, an Ethernet port, and a second USB-A port face directly back.
The included remote is the same one you get with the U6H. It’s a rectangular wand made of black plastic with a large circular navigation pad near the top. Power, input, settings, and Google Assistant buttons sit above the pad, along with a combination pinhole microphone/indicator LED. Home, back, and live TV buttons reside directly below the pad, as well as playback controls, a volume rocker, and a channel rocker. Farther down, dedicated service buttons offer instant access to Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Netflix, Peacock, Tubi, and YouTube.
Google TV, With AirPlay Support Coming Soon
Hisense opts for the Google TV smart TV platform on the U8H, which provides plenty of apps and features. All major video streaming services are present, including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Disney+, HBO Max, Hulu, Netflix, Sling TV, Twitch, and YouTube. This platform supports Google Cast for streaming content from your Android phone or Chrome tab. An update planned for October will add the same Apple AirPlay connectivity features the Hisense U6H has.
Google TV also unlocks access to Google Assistant, and the U8H has far-field microphones that enable hands-free use. Like with a smart display, you can simply say, “Hey, Google,” to summon the voice service. Google Assistant is useful for looking up content, controlling the TV and any compatible smart home devices on your network, and searching for general information like weather reports and sports scores.
High Contrast and Wide Colors
The Hisense U8H is a 4K LED-backlit LCD TV with a 120Hz refresh rate. It supports high dynamic range (HDR) content in HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and hybrid log gamma (HLG). It has an ATSC 3.0 tuner, too.
We test TVs with a Klein K-80 colorimeter, a Murideo SIX-G signal generator, and Portrait Displays’ Calman software. Out of the box, in Theater Day mode with an SDR signal, the U8H shows a peak brightness of 711 nits with a full-screen white field and 1,410 nits with an 18% field. With an HDR signal in the same mode, the TV shows a peak brightness of 842 nits with a full-screen field and 1,982 nits with an 18% field. In both cases, the black level is an excellent 0.01cd/m^2 for an effective contrast ratio of 198,226:1. That performance soundly beats the U8G (88.168:1). The U8H doesn’t, however, reach the levels of the Samsung QN90B. That model offers similar peak brightness (1,700 nits with an HDR signal and an 18% white field), but boasts OLED-challenging contrast with effectively perfect black levels because of its miniLED backlight.
The U8H also has an array backlight system and seems to turn off the lights completely for black sections, but it displays some light bloom whereas the QN90B shows little to none. Light bloom is one of the factors that has kept LED TVs from challenging OLEDs on black levels, though the trade-off for OLEDs is a far dimmer screen. For reference, our Editors’ Choice-winning OLED TV, the LG C2, has a peak brightness of just 570 nits with an HDR signal and an 18% white field.
Although we measured the best contrast numbers on the U8H with the Theater Day mode, we recommend the Filmmaker mode for watching movies. The latter has a dimmer peak brightness of 1,877 nits with an HDR signal and an 18% white field, but better preserves shadow details and highlights. It also displays slightly more accurate colors than the Theater Day mode, though the black levels between the two are identical.
The above charts show the U8H in Filmmaker mode with an SDR signal compared against Rec.709 broadcast standards, and with an HDR signal compared against DCI-P3 digital cinema standards. SDR colors are well balanced but a bit oversaturated past broadcast standards, though that isn’t a big deal because they’re still less intense than HDR colors and won’t hurt the viewing experience. HDR colors are impressive and exceed the DCI-P3 color space, though cyans and magentas start to drift a bit green and red, respectively. Fortunately, they aren’t significantly skewed, so colors still generally look accurate out of the box.
BBC’s Planet Earth II looks excellent on the U8H. The picture is bright and colorful. The TV shows well-saturated and natural greens and blues for plants and water, respectively. Fine details like fur and bark come through clearly both under direct sunlight and in shade.
The red of Deadpool’s costume in the overcast opening scenes of dead pool is vibrant and balanced; it doesn’t appear faded or purple at all. The yellows and oranges of the flames in the burning lab fight scene are bright and vibrant, with nicely varied highlights against fairly dark, though not inky, shadow details.
In the party scenes of The Great Gatsby, the cuts and textures of black suit jackets and dark hair come through without appearing washed out, while the whites of balloons and shirts in the same frames look quite bright. This film shows how the TV’s Filmmaker mode tamps down a bit on the backlight and produces better black levels at the expense of a slightly dimmer (but still quite bright) picture.
Colors fade slightly when you view the TV from an off-angle, but not to a significant degree. When you entertain a group of people, everyone should be able to see the screen just fine regardless of where they sit. The U8H doesn’t offer the perfect off-angle color retention of TVs like the LG C2, but it’s far better than more budget models.
Solid Gaming Chops
Gamers, especially AMD-based PC gamers, should like the U8H. Its 120Hz panel features variable refresh rate (VRR) and AMD FreeSync Premium.
The TV is also quite responsive. Using an HDFury Diva HDMI matrix, we measured an input lag of 8.1ms in Game mode. That falls under the 10ms threshold we use to determine if a TV is among the best for gaming. Predictably, with Game mode off, that input lag jumps to 86.5ms.
A Worthy Successor and an Excellent Value
The Hisense U8H is a fantastic TV for the price and a worthy successor to the U8G. It offers excellent contrast, wide and generally accurate colors, strong gaming features and performance, and hands-free Google Assistant with Google Cast support (and Apple AirPlay arriving soon). The TV is a strong value at its $1,399.99 suggested retail price and a truly impressive value at its “everyday” price of $999.99 for the 65-inch model, earning it our Editors’ Choice for midrange TVs. It stands alongside the similar TCL 6-Series 4K Google TV ($1,299.99 for the 65-inch version) as one of our top value picks, though the TCL isn’t as bright, and lacks AMD FreeSync for gaming and Apple AirPlay for casting.
If you want to save even more money, the Hisense U6H (effectively $549.99 for the 65-inch variant) features the same excellent Google TV interface. It’s not as vibrant, bright, or responsive, however. If you want to splurge, the LG C2 ($2,499.99 for the 65-inch model) remains our favorite OLED TV because of its incredible (though slightly dimmer) picture quality, while the Samsung QN90B ($2,599.99 for the 65-inch variant) pushes the limits of contrast performance for an LED TV.
Victorian youth justice management rejected internal recommendations to upgrade the security of the unit two young men escaped from at the Malmsbury Youth Justice Center over the weekend, the ABC has learned.
Key points:
The ABC understands concerns were raised in 2019 about the risk of escape from the roof of the admissions unit
Two young men who escaped from the unit over the weekend were arrested by police on Monday
Staff have reported concerns about dangerous staffing levels at the youth prison
Two young men smashed through the plaster ceiling of their cells in the admissions unit and escaped through the roof cavity of the youth prison north-west of Melbourne on Saturday night.
They were caught by police on Monday.
The 22-year-old escapee will face court on Tuesday after he was arrested in Corio, near Geelong, while the 19-year-old was sent to adult prison and will face court again in September.
The unit is not surrounded by a secure fence.
The ABC understands concerns were raised in 2019 about poor security of the admissions unit, which is an older building in the precinct.
There have been multiple reported attacks on staff at the Malmsbury Youth Justice Center in the past few weeks.(abcnews)
Internal recommendations were made to upgrade security and infrastructure of the unit, including the ceiling and roof due to risk of escape.
The ABC understands the recommendations were ultimately rejected by management.
The ABC has reported extensively on serious assaults of staff and young people at Malmsbury.
In the past six weeks, staff have reported being assaulted, threatened, spat on, and having suspected urine thrown at them. One young man threw hot water and honey at another inmate which landed on the side of a staff member’s face.
Another staff member witnessed a young person being seriously assaulted by two young men who stomped on him and kicked him in the head while he was on the ground.
Staff have reported concerns about dangerously low staffing levels. Despite supervision ratios mandating one staff member to three young people, the ABC understands staff were left alone in secure prisoners with out of their cells.
Last month, two young people attempted to escape the Malmsbury precinct while being escorted by staff but were stopped.
The ABC understands general manager Trudy O’Connor resigned four weeks ago.
Windows covered during headcounts
Sources have also told the ABC young people regularly cover their windows during head checks.
They said management allowed this, despite staff warnings about not being able to see young people during head checks.
It is not clear if this contributed to Saturday’s escape, but staff have told the ABC that management was reluctant to challenge young people about covering the viewing windows, in a bid to “keep the peace.”
The Department of Justice declined to answer the ABC’s questions and said it was investigating the circumstances of the escape.
“Any escape is taken very seriously, and the safety of the community is of paramount concern,” a spokesperson said.
“The young people [who escaped on the weekend] are not considered dangerous.”
A dermatologist in Irvine, California, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of poisoning her husband, police said.
A man reported that he believed he was being poisoned by his wife of 10 years after he grew ill over the course of a month. He also provided video evidence supporting the claim to authorities, police said in a statement.
His wife, Yue Yu, 45, was arrested Thursday after investigators interviewed her and searched the couple’s home. Records show she was released from Orange County Jail after her $30,000 bail was posted on Friday evening. She is due to appear in court today.
Her husband “sustained significant internal injuries but is expected to recover,” police said. The OC Register reported that the husband set up secret cameras to record the evidence shared with police.
Yu attended medical school at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, according to her office’s website, and now works as a specialist in dermatology in the city of Mission Viejo.
The hospital affiliated with Yu, Providence Mission, issued a statement saying they were aware of the arrest and are working with authorities.
“This incident is a domestic matter which occurred in Irvine, and we want to reassure our community that there has been no impact on our patients,” the hospital said.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Yu’s information appeared to be removed from the hospital’s website on Sunday.
Finally, coffee that’s good for something other than making my entire body vibrate like a chihuahua.
If you like a good cuppa as well as supporting a good cause, and you happen to live in Sydney, we have got the event for you.
On August 11th, from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm AEST, JMC Academy, an Ultimo-based education institute known for its animation and game development courses, will have its cafeteria taken over by Two Point Campus (which is out today!) for a coffee-based celebration.
The coffee in question is a Two Point Campus-inspired blend called Varsity Roast. It comprises roast Arabica and Robusta beans sourced from Yemen, Rwanda, Panama, Nicaragua, and Kenya Lena. The blend was created by Kiwi-Australian coffee brand Morena Kawhe Coffee Co.
The good cause in question is that all proceeds from the Two Point Campus coffee sold will go towards Indigitek. Indigitek is a First Nations-focused charity organization with a mission to improve Indigenous youth education and career opportunities within Australia. It aims to place 300 Indigenous Australians in tech jobs by 2025.
If you head down to JMC Academy on Thursday, you can grab one of these coffees for a minimum of $2, although extra donations are encouraged to support Indigitek’s mission. The sweeties over at Five Star Games will also be matching every donation, which we love them for.
Those who get themselves a coffee can also go into the running to win copies of Two Point Campus, a very, very fun game that has already taken up a good amount of my time and David’s too. You could also win a bag of Varsity Roast to take home for your personal brew.
Any opportunity to support our First Nations communities is an excellent one, not to mention the bonus of a genuinely delicious-sounding coffee blend.
Two Point Campus is out now for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
West Ham have been slammed for charging AU$13 for a pint of lager.
The Hammers were in action at London Stadium for the first time this season as they fell 2-0 to Manchester City over the weekend.
Football fans arriving at the match were left bemused by the astonishing costs of refreshments, The Sun reports.
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Twitter account Football Away Days warned: “If you’re off to West Ham this season, you’ll need to remortgage your house for a few pints.”
Pints of Amstel, Birra Moretti and Heineken were all priced at £7.60 ($13), while even a half was £3.70 ($6.40) for the former and £3.85 ($6.65) for the latter two.
Even a bottle of Coca-Cola was priced at an astonishing £4.50 ($7.80), with a packet of crisps setting fans back £2.50 ($4.30).
Football Away Days’ post gained plenty of traction among irate fans, with one responding: “That tastes like bankruptcy.”
A second blasted: “Absolutely dreadful club.”
While a third smoked: “Ripping off their own fans during a cost of living crisis. Stay classy West Ham.”
Another added: “£4.50 for a bottle of coke!!! S*** the bed! That’s absolutely scandalous! They’re probably buying them in at less than a £1 a bottle.”
A further supporter called on fans to boycott, writing: “The only retaliation is to not buy a thing. (Maxwel) Cornet wasn’t worth it if the fans have to pay his wages weekly. Disgusting.”
A recent survey found that Man City was home to the cheapest pint in the Premier League.
According to Top10Casinos, you can pick one up from Etihad Stadium for just £3.40.
Fans smoked last year about the cost of a burger and chips at Arsenal.
The greedy Gunners charged fans $31 for a burger and chips at Emirates Stadium.
Erling Haaland scored twice on his Premier League debut as Manchester City opened their title defense with a 2-0 win at West Ham.
Haaland lived up to the hype since his transfer from Borussia Dortmund to give the reigning champions a perfect start to the season in the searing heat of East London.
West Ham nearly derailed City’s title chances when they led 2-0 at halftime in the penultimate game of last season before Pep Guardiola’s men battled back for the point that ultimately edged out Liverpool at the top of the table.
But they were no match this time as Haaland immediately provided the value of City adding a proven goalscorer to their arsenal.
The Norwegian has been signed as the long-term successor to Sergio Aguero and started his City career just like the club’s all-time record goalscorer with a double on his league debut.
Haaland had missed chances in City’s 3-1 defeat to Liverpool in the Community Shield, but Guardiola’s warning that the goals would soon flow proved to be correct.
City’s patient possession game wore the Hammers down as temperatures in the English capital soared above 30 degrees Celsius on Sunday.
Haaland took responsibility from the penalty spot to open his Premier League account after he had been brought down by Alphonse Areola.
West Ham started the second half with more attacking intent but that simply played into the hands of City’s new weapon as Kevin De Bruyne split open their defense with one pass on the counter-attack for Haaland to gallop clear on goal and slot low past Areola.
– with AFP
This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission
The rail union says it has been advised Transport for New South Wales will shut down the Illawarra rail line on Wednesday, amid planned industrial action.
Key points:
Industrial action will result in a drastic reduction in trains on the Illawarra South Coast line on Wednesday
The union says it planned industrial action over train safety issues from 10am till 4pm, but Transport for NSW has escalated the situation.
Transport for NSW says services will be impacted from 6am to 8pm and customers should consider alternative transport
Workers at dozens of stations including Wollongong are set to walk off the job for six hours on Wednesday, as the union’s ongoing dispute with the state government about the safety of new trains continues.
But the union says Transport management yesterday advised it of plans escalate planned action by deciding to stop running trains on the Illawarra South Coast line.
Alex Claassens from the Rail, Tram and Bus Union says it’s disappointing as the industrial action was designed to ensure services could continue to run.
“Senior management and the transport bureaucrats have made a decision they are going to stop all trains on the Illawarra line from 6am to 8pm Wednesday which we believe is a drastic escalation of our industrial action,” he said.
“Yet again it’s another example the transport bureaucrats have deliberately used our industrial action to escalate it and make it seem like we’re doing this horrible thing.”
In a statement, Transport for NSW said that while the industrial action officially runs from 10am – 4pm, customers will likely be impacted for longer.
“Our customers will start to feel the effects from around 6am,” a spokesperson said.
“To ensure the safety of our customers, staff, and the network overall, trains will need to be taken back to stabling yards and depots before the industrial action starts.”
Customers are being advised to plan their journeys in advance, consider alternative transport options and allow extra travel time.
The winner of Tuesday’s contest will be the overwhelming general election favorite to take the place of Rep. Peter Welch, who is running for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Patrick Leahy. That month, voters will also cast ballots on an amendment to the state constitution that would protect abortion rights.
Balint, a former schoolteacher first elected to the state legislature in 2014, is widely viewed as the frontrunner heading into Tuesday’s election, with Gray her closest rival. What began as a crowded field has thinned over the last few months. Louis Meyers, a physician, is the only other candidate actively campaigning following Sianay Chase Clifford’s withdrawal in July.
A former Welch staffer and Vermont assistant attorney general, Gray’s early momentum appears to have slowed over the summer as her rival solidified progressive support. Balint’s strength has been bolstered by endorsements from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, the state’s popular independent progressive, and, importantly, state Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, who dropped out of the primary in May and immediately backed Balint, helping to consolidate support on the left.
The contest for Vermont’s lone House seat was triggered by Leahy’s announcement last November that he would retire at the end of the term after nearly 50 years on the job. Welch quickly announced his candidacy to replace Leahy, which cleared the way for the rare open-seat race.
Leahy has not formally endorsed Gray, though he has donated to her cause and said he voted for her. His wife, Marcelle Leahy, endorsed Gray, who also has the support of moderate former Vermont Govs. Howard Dean and Madeleine Kunin.
Welch, who won the seat in 2006 when it last came open, has largely steered clear of the primary except to praise the women on the ballot. He won reelection in 2020 with more than 67% of the vote.
Balint and Gray have raised similar amounts of cash over the course of the race, but Balint has benefited from significant outside spending — which Gray’s campaign has repeatedly criticized. The LGBTQ Victory Fund’s PAC has been the biggest player, backing Balant, who is gay, and investing about $1 million on her behalf. The Congressional Progressive Caucus’ campaign arm has also spent nearly $200,000 for Balint.
Rich Clark, a professor at Castleton University and Vermont pollster, said that with so little separating the candidates on policy, branding has become a more influential element in the race.
“I don’t think this is an issues race,” Clark said, a factor that has added more weight to endorsements and the “progressive versus moderate impression” among voters.
Though Gray and Balint are, indeed, closely aligned on almost every major issue, Balint has emerged as the progressive standard-bearer, winning support from Sanders and both senators from neighboring Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey. Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is also backing Balint, along with other leading national figures on the left.
“When it comes down to policy, there’s not a lot of space between them, but when it comes down to image, I think there is,” Clark said. “High turnout for us has been about 25% (in primary elections), so we’re not talking about a real representation of the Democratic Party in Vermont. It’ll be the most engaged and they’ll tend to be on the progressive side.”
Balint has outflanked Gray on the left with her clear support for stripping qualified immunity from police, which protects officers from most private lawsuits. Gray has been noncommittal, suggesting in a recent debate that she might support such a move should it extend to a wider swath of public officials.
But even as they sought to carve out distinctions in their views on policing and drug policy, it was a remark by Balint in May, during a forum with members of the Vermont Progressive Party, that provided the debate’s sharpest exchange.
Balint, at a gathering with VPP members this spring, said it would “be an absolute catastrophe if the candidate representing us on the left was Molly Gray,” whom she labeled a “corporatist Democrat.”
During the debate, Gray jabbed Balint over “negative attacks” and said that while Balint subsequently backed off the comment, “There’s never been a personal apology.”
“You can take the opportunity tonight if you want,” Gray said.
Balint did.
“If you took offense to that comment, I apologize,” she said. “If you found it hurtful, I apologize.”
