Galbraith, former UN diplomat fired over Afghan election disagreement, runs for Vt. office

Fired UN diplomat Galbraith seeks office in Vt.

MONTPELIER, Vt. — Former U.N. diplomat Peter Galbraith says he’s going to run for the Vermont state Senate.

He was fired from a U.N. post in Afghanistan after a disagreement over last year’s presidential election there. He has also played roles in Croatia, Iraq and East Timor.

Years ago Galbraith served as chairman of the Vermont Democratic Party. The 59-year-old Democrat is from Townshend, in southern Vermont.

He said Monday that even though he has spent years outside Vermont, Townshend has always remained his legal home.

Galbraith’s father, the late economist John Kenneth Galbraith, moved to Townshend in 1947.

(This version DELETES an incorrect reference to Galbraith being a U.S. diplomat in Iraq; he was on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.)