As expected, Aly Richards has declared her candidacy for governor, becoming the second person willing to take on S.S. Phil Scott, the Nimitz class aircraft carrier of #vtpoli. And I am all for it.

Richards is the former head of Let’s Grow Kids, the organization that led the charge for improved child care. She’s currently chair of the University of Vermont Medical Center board, which puts her in kind of an interesting (uncomfortable?) position when it comes to the hot-button health care affordability issue. I mean, considering that UVMMC is widely seen as The Big Bad of Vermont’s cost crisis.

The first to enter the race was Amanda Janoo, an economic policy expert with the Wellbeing Economy Alliance. Each brings a unique and intriguing skill set to the race. I’m not here to compare their resumés or agendas; I just want to cheer the simple fact that two very talented people actually want the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in the same year, a blessing we haven’t enjoyed since 2016.

Conventional wisdom would say a competitive Democratic primary is a resource drain, putting the winner at an even greater disadvantage against a popular incumbent who hasn’t been beaten in literally forever. He’s been in politics since 2000 — amazing for a self-professed non-politician, right? — and his next election defeat will be his first.

But I say, to hell with conventional wisdom. Bring on the primary!

If the Democrats are to beat Scott — assuming he runs again, which seems a safe bet since he’s clearly laying the groundwork for an all-out, down ‘n dirty campaign against Them Damn Democrats — they aren’t going to do it by following the old C.W. It’s gonna take some jiu jitsu, a bit of the old David v. Goliath, a determined excursion outside the box.

And wouldn’t you know it, we’ve got a pair of outside-the-box candidates. While Democratic officeholders continue their brilliant record of shirking the battle, Janoo and Richards have marched resolutely into the arena.

Scott will almost certainly have a huge financial advantage. He retains a stranglehold on the bully pulpit, as the only state-level politician who can reliably draw reporters and cameras to a press conference. And given past performance, the Democratic candidate can’t expect much in the way of tangible support from the party itself.

What it’s going to take is a scrappy, outsider-y campaign fueled by a wave of voter disaffection with Republicans. And it’s going to lean heavily on what the pros call “earned media,” the kind you don’t have to pay for.

That’s where the primary comes in. Janoo and Richards are competing against each other, but they are effectively fighting side-by-side in the ultimate battle — to bring down our political Goliath. A competitive primary will drive much more media attention than, say, a primary featuring Esther Charlestin and nobody else. That’s exposure you can’t buy. It’s an opportunity to break through the noise and reach voters in a way that a solo candidate could not during primary season.

As I wrote after Janoo entered the race and RIchards’ candidacy was widely expected:

I’d advise them to hit the road together — not just traditional candidate forums, but just getting out there, meeting people and presenting their visions for Vermont. It’s not something that traditional politicians would do, but then our traditional politicians have failed us repeatedly for a full decade now.

I still believe that, but I don’t expect a pair of candidates — even unconventional candidates — to undertake a joint campaign. What they could do is cooperate in scheduling more than the usual number of forums and debates. (They could, for example, offer to meet the editorial staff of any media outlet in the state, including the local weeklies.) They ought to maximize earned media opportunities to bring more attention to themselves, the primary, and the existence of a positive Democratic agenda and a plausible anti-Scott narrative.

Besides, both of them are appealing figures with solid if unconventional qualifications and some good, creative ideas. Janoo in particular is practically unknown in the small, insular world of #vtpoli, but (as her first campaign finance report proved) she can call on resources inaccessible to the regular class of politician. She deserves broader recognition and serious consideration. The same can be said for Richards. She spearheaded an advocacy movement that legitimately broke through a seemingly unbreakable political logjam on child care.

I’m not taking sides, at least not yet. Both candidates merit your attention. If you prefer one, please support her. If you like them both, put a little something in their respective tip jars and be ready to dig deeper in support of the primary winner — who will need all the help she can get to beat Phil Scott. The primary isn’t an impediment; it’s an opportunity.