County positions including state's attorney, sheriff, side judge and high bailiff in Caledonia, Orleans, Lamoille and Washington counties will be on the ballot this year. Major-party candidates had to file petitions by late May.
All four state's attorneys are running unopposed: Caledonia County's Claire Burns (R-Walden), Lamoille County's Aliena Gerhard (D-Craftsbury), Orleans County's Farzana Leyva (R-Westfield) and Washington County's Michelle Donnelly (D-Barre City). They are expected to advance through the August primary to the November general election.
The only contested sheriff's race is in Caledonia County, where first-term Sheriff Brandon Thrailkill (R-Lyndon) faces a primary challenge from High Bailiff Roger Gerrish (R-Lyndon). Gerrish defeated Thrailkill for the high bailiff post in 2022. Sheriffs in the other three counties are unopposed.
Side judge contests are sparse. In Caledonia County, no one filed for the two seats; the governor will appoint candidates. Lamoille County has only one candidate: John "Randy Randall" Pratt (D-Wolcott). Incumbents Madeline M. Motta and Patricia Gabel did not seek reelection. Orleans County incumbents Curtis A. Hardy (R-Newport) and Sean C. Selby (R-W. Charleston) are running again unopposed. In Washington County, incumbent Leah Murphy (D-Montpelier) faces two primary challengers; the top two Democrats will face Republican Ture Nelson in November.
High bailiff races are all uncontested. In Caledonia County, Bobbie J. Roy (R-Barnet) is running to succeed Robert Gerrish, who did not file. Lamoille County incumbent Kevin Lehoe (R-Cabot), Orleans County incumbent Richard Wells Jr. (R-Derby) and Washington County incumbent Shawn McManis (D-Worcester) are all seeking reelection.
NEK will be looking into who the governor may appoint to fill the vacant Caledonia County side judge positions.
Photo: Niranjan Arminius (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo is illustrative and not from the scene.
Log in as a subscriber to comment, or become a member.