Peter Welch

Peter Welch
United States Senator from Vermont
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2023 Serving with Bernie Sanders
Preceded by	Patrick Leahy
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Vermont's at-large district
In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2023
Preceded by	Bernie Sanders
Succeeded by	Becca Balint
73rd and 78th President pro tempore of the Vermont Senate
In office January 8, 2003 – January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Peter Shumlin
Succeeded by	Peter Shumlin
In office January 9, 1985 – January 4, 1989
Preceded by	Robert A. Bloomer
Succeeded by	Doug Racine
Minority Leader of the Vermont Senate
In office January 5, 1983 – January 8, 1985
Preceded by	Robert V. Daniels
Succeeded by	Allen D. Avery
Member of the Vermont Senate from the Windsor district
In office December 13, 2001 – January 3, 2007 Serving with John Campbell, Richard McCormack
Preceded by	Cheryl Rivers
Succeeded by	Alice Nitka
In office January 7, 1981 – January 4, 1989 Serving with Chester Scott, John Howland, Edgar May, William Hunter
Preceded by	Herbert Ogden
Succeeded by	Richard McCormack
Personal details
Born	Peter Francis Welch (1947-05-02) May 2, 1947 (age 77) Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Joan Smith ​ ​ (m. 1986; died 2004)​ Margaret Cheney ​ (m. 2002)​
Education	College of the Holy Cross (BA) University of California, Berkeley (JD)
Website	House website

Peter Francis Welch (born May 2, 1947) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party. Welch is the junior U.S. Senator from Vermont since 2023. He was the U.S. Representative for Vermont's At-large congressional district from 2007 to 2023.

In 2016, Welch supported U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders for the Democratic nomination for President.^[1] He supported him again in 2020.^[2]

In November 2021, Welch announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate in the 2022 election to replace retiring Senator Patrick Leahy.^[3][4] He won the general election in November 2022.

1. ↑ Burbank, April (February 19, 2016). "Rep. Peter Welch throws support behind Bernie Sanders". BurlingtonFreePress.com. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
2. ↑ Krieg, Gregory (February 19, 2019). "Sanders taps new campaign manager, gets endorsements from top Vermont lawmakers". CNN. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
3. ↑ Forgey, Quint. "Rep. Peter Welch launches Senate bid for Leahy's seat". POLITICO. Retrieved 2021-11-22.
4. ↑ "Rep. Peter Welch announces run for U.S. Senate". WCAX-TV. Burlington, Vt. November 22, 2021. Retrieved November 22, 2021.