Barnstable County Sample Ballot & Voter Guide 2026

On the September 1, 2026 Massachusetts state primary ballot; a plurality wins the nomination and voters not enrolled in a party may take either party's ballot, per the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Incumbent Rob Galibois faces former staff prosecutor Michael Giardino in a Democratic contest that decides the office, since no Republican is running, per the Provincetown Independent. The district covers Barnstable, Duke

• Robert Joseph Galibois · DemocraticIncumbent▾

  Robert Joseph Galibois is the Cape and Islands District Attorney seeking a second term, elected in 2022 after five years as a prosecutor and 20 years as a defense attorney, per the Provincetown Independent. His first term included forming a human trafficking unit and supporting a new mental health court in Barnstable, while facing criticism from former employees over staff turnover, which he says reflected resistance

  Priorities: An elder fraud initiative, including funding for three forensic examiners, per the Provincetown Independent · Expanding recovery court while aggressively prosecuting fentanyl dealers, per the Provincetown Independent · Community and immigrant outreach, including tripling U visa certifications for crime victims, per the Provincetown Independent
• Michael Giardino · Democratic▾

  Michael Giardino is a superior court prosecutor in the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office and a Cape Cod native who previously rose to chief prosecutor of the district courts in the Cape and Islands office, leaving in October 2024, per the Provincetown Independent. He is running on restoring stability after what he says were 35 staff departures in two years, per the Provincetown Independent.

  Priorities: Stability and staff retention in the office, per the Provincetown Independent · Rebuilding the victim witness advocate unit, per the Provincetown Independent and Cape News · Continuing the mental health court, elder fraud, and human trafficking initiatives, per the Provincetown Independent

On the September 1, 2026 Massachusetts state primary ballot; a plurality wins the nomination and voters not enrolled in a party may take either party's ballot, per the Secretary of the Commonwealth. One seat on the three-member Board of Regional Commissioners is up in 2026: three Democrats compete September 1, and the winner meets Republican Adam Hogue of Barnstable on November 3, per CAI and the certified lists.

• Ronald J. Bergstrom · DemocraticIncumbent▾

  Ronald J. Bergstrom is vice chair of the Barnstable County Board of Regional Commissioners, serving since 2019 after 12 years on the county Assembly of Delegates and service on the Chatham select board, per the Provincetown Independent and CAI.

  Priorities: County support for town wastewater management plans, per CAI · Maintaining the AquiFund septic loan program, per CAI · County emergency management services, per CAI
• Daniel A. Gessen · Democratic▾

  Daniel A. Gessen is Falmouth's delegate to the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates, its deputy speaker, and an infantry officer in the Massachusetts Army National Guard, per his campaign site and CAI. He cites securing $1.3 million in federal wastewater funding while on the Assembly, per CAI.

  Priorities: Regional action on housing affordability and cost of living, per his campaign site · Wastewater funding and Title 5 septic cost relief, per CAI · Broadband and child care coordination, per his campaign site

  Campaign site →
• Eric E. Schwaab · Democratic▾

  Eric E. Schwaab is a Barnstable Housing Authority member elected in 2025, running largely self-funded without prior county government experience, per the Provincetown Independent and CAI. He argues the county should push back on dense housing development he says exceeds the Cape's carrying capacity, per CAI.

  Priorities: Limiting high-density development, per CAI · Stronger Cape Cod Commission review of large projects, per CAI · Opposition to the real estate transfer fee, per CAI
• Adam Michael Hogue · Republican▾

  Adam Michael Hogue of Barnstable is the certified Republican candidate for county commissioner and advances directly to the November 3 ballot, per the Secretary of the Commonwealth's certified lists.

On the September 1, 2026 Massachusetts state primary ballot; a plurality wins the nomination and voters not enrolled in a party may take either party's ballot, per the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The only certified candidate in either party.

• Anastasia Welsh Perrino · Republican▾

  Anastasia Welsh Perrino is the certified Republican candidate for Barnstable County Register of Probate on the September 1, 2026 primary ballot, per the Secretary of the Commonwealth's certified lists.