I totally understand. I have two friends looking to move out of my state from the same reason. The mourning for our country would still be there for me if I moved, but having a more reasonable governor in whatever state you live seriously makes difference too! The current Vermont governor is R, but he appears rather moderate (which is unheard of in the south right now). I recommend you look into past threads about local politics on this sub because I learned a lot!

I read this and it sounds like something I would have wrote. I live in a southern state and am sick of the extremist right wing politics that control so much down here. I’ve visited Vermont two times now in two years and adore it and think of it often. I would consider moving there, but I’m a caretaker for one of my parents and can’t move. I also know that winters would be a huge challenge for me having only lived where it never snows or gets icy. That, and housing is especially outrageous there (and I would feel bad adding to that problem with how much I love Vermonters). I am wishing you the best of luck but with a word of caution - there are extremist politics everywhere in this country (and more growing globally now too) and it’s impossible to escape now with all of us so connected to each other technologically. As you mention, you want more local investment in people and the best way to do that is to find community. Sometimes that’s within a like-minded political hub, but that could happen in a lot of places that’s not Vermont too.

Anyway, I truly wish you the best ahead and hope you find somewhere and some community that you love. This is definitely me projecting at least a little bit, because I know I have an romanticized version of Vermont that this sub has helped me balance into something more realistic. I’ll admit though, I am still totally smitten with the state.