But for many locals, the idea of Vance coming to the state that not only rejected the Trump/Vance ticket by the widest margin, but to an especially liberal part of the state where the administration is wildly unpopular, doesn’t add up.
Not that there isn’t plenty of derision. Activists have planned protests in Warren and neighboring Waitsfield. Local social media sites are chockful of bitter recriminations , saying Vance is not welcome here because of the administration’s policies against DEI and the mass firings at various federal agencies, among other reasons.
WARREN, Vt. — Here in the Mad River Valley, where the Trump administration is about as popular as a rainstorm on the slopes at Sugarbush, news that Vice President JD Vance was coming for a ski weekend was greeted with surprise more than derision.
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More than 83 percent of voters in this town of roughly 2,000 voted for the Harris/Walz ticket last November. And Vermonters despise Donald Trump so much that Vermont was the only state where Trump challenger Nikki Haley won a primary in 2024, a result that analysts chalk up to many Democrats and Independents voting for Haley to stick it to Trump.
As he finished his morning coffee sitting outside the Warren Store, the general store in the middle of Warren Village, resident Chris Salinder, 72, suggested it may be that distinctive unpopularity that figured in Vance’s thinking.
“I can’t help wondering if this was to stir the pot,” Salinder said.
Chris Salinder drank coffee at the Warren Store. Dmitry Belyakov for The Boston Globe
The Pitcher Inn, a quaint hotel across the street from the store, had earlier said Vance, his wife, and their three children were to stay there. But on Thursday, the inn’s owner, George Dorsey, announced that the Vances wouldn’t be staying there after all. On Friday, the inn’s general manager, Brooks Bradbury, declined to say why the Vances canceled.
“Nothing is more important than the privacy of our guests,” Bradbury said.
But Dorsey told the local newspaper, The Valley Reporter, that the cancellation came after it became clear there would be a protest outside the inn on Saturday. Social media sites were full of complaints that the inn was going to host the Vances.
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Dorsey pleaded for civility, even as he acknowledged that many in the area do not share the aims of the Trump administration.
“The visit of the vice president presents a rare opportunity to communicate to him,” Dorsey said. “I hope that happens in a way that is sensitive to his three small children.”
While the office of Vermont Governor Phil Scott confirmed that Vance would visit Warren this weekend, it was unclear where the Vances would stay.
The Warren Select Board said it welcomed the Vances’ visit, even as it made clear it opposed the administration’s policies.
“The town of Warren is proud to share with the Vance family a community that embraces diversity and inclusion, supports the arts, champions local farms and businesses, prioritizes environmental sustainability, and offers world-class recreational opportunities,” the board wrote.
An entrance to Pitcher Inn in Warren, Vt., where Vice President JD Vance had been expected to stay for the weekend. Dmitry Belyakov for The Boston Globe
In an interview, Luke Youmell, chair of the Select Board, said the board “did take some time to make that statement, and it’s carefully worded.”
“All five board members have strong views, and we worked hard to craft a statement that was inclusive,” Youmell said. “Our valley lives and dies on hospitality. We want to support our businesses.”
Walking that fine line, between having strong opinions against the Trump administration while recognizing that tourism is the main economic driver in the area, is something on many minds around here.
For others, it’s the sheer logistics of a vice presidential visit.
Amy McDonald, who lives on Cape Cod but rents a house at Sugarbush for the ski season, said she wondered if the Secret Service presence would make getting around the mountain difficult, both on the roads and the trails.
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“I have family coming up this weekend and just want them to be able to get up the access road,” she said.
Visitors will have to contend with several planned protests, too.
Judy Daly, an organizer for Indivisible Mad River Valley, which bills itself as a “grassroots organization in the Mad River Valley committed to saving democracy,” urged protesters to demonstrate peacefully on Saturday morning in Waitsfield.
Daly also advised demonstrators to ignore “bad actors” who might show up to disrupt the protest.
Gregory Thayer, a Rutland Republican who last year ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor as a “constitutional conservative,” used social media to invite people to a rally in Warren Village to support Vance’s visit on Saturday morning.
Up on the slopes at Sugarbush, many skiers either didn’t know Vance was coming or didn’t care.
Richie Taliani, 48, of Long Island, and Jacqui To, 28, of New York City, booked a last-minute trip to Sugarbush this week, unaware that Vance was coming.
They don’t think politics and skiing mix, and bear no hostility toward Vance if he wants to ski Sugarbush.
“I’ll take a lap with the guy,” Taliani said.
Skiers were seen at the slopes of Sugarbush ski resort where Vice President JD Vance was expected to go for weekend. Dmitry Belyakov for The Boston Globe
Asked if he knew the vice president was going to ski Sugarbush on Saturday, Steve Warren, who lives in Essex, Vt., said on Friday, “That’s why I’m skiing today.”
He said his decision was not based on opposition to Vance as much as opposition to crowds.
The Vance visit even affected Warren’s shopping plans. He got off the mountain at midday and was headed to the nearby Shaw’s to do some food shopping because he heard that protesters were going to gather there in the parking lot on Saturday.
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John Bleh, a spokesman for Sugarbush Resort, declined to discuss details of the vice president’s family visit, but said that the resort will “strive to make sure their visit does not affect our operations.”
Scott, a Republican who is popular with Democrats, said he would not meet Vance during the visit, but urged Vermonters to act respectfully.
“I hope Vermonters remember the vice president is here on a family trip with his young children and, while we may not always agree, we should be respectful,” he said.
Kevin Cullen is a Globe reporter and columnist who roams New England. He can be reached at kevin.cullen@globe.com.
Vice President JD Vance is skiing in Vermont, and the locals have opinions about that
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