Vermont › Bennington County › Vermont Senate, Bennington District
5 candidates are tracked for Vermont Senate, Bennington District on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Seth Bongartz, Robert F. Plunkett, Rachel Shaw, Lawrence "Spike" Whitmire and Josh R. Williams. Candidate information follows official Bennington County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
Seth Bongartz (Democratic), Robert F. Plunkett (Democratic), Rachel Shaw (Progressive), Lawrence "Spike" Whitmire (Republican), Josh R. Williams (Republican) are on the November 3 ballot for Vermont Senate, Bennington District; Seth Bongartz, Robert F. Plunkett are sitting members, per the Vermont Senate's official member directory (legislature.vermont.gov). This is a two-seat district: voters choose up to two candidates, and the top two finishers are elected. Source: the Vermont Secretary of State's general election qualified-candidates list dated August 27, 2026.
Democratic · Incumbent
Seth Bongartz is the incumbent Vermont state senator for the Bennington District, according to the Vermont General Assembly's 2026 member roster. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Seth Bongartz.
Democratic · Incumbent
Robert F. Plunkett is the incumbent Vermont state senator for the Bennington District, according to the Vermont General Assembly's 2026 member roster. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Robert F. Plunkett.
Progressive
Rachel Shaw is a construction business owner who served in the Massachusetts Army National Guard as a combat engineer and worked in hazardous-materials spill response before moving to Bennington in 2023, per the Bennington Banner. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Rachel Shaw.
Republican
Lawrence "Spike" Whitmire has worked in real estate and construction in Bennington County for more than 30 years and serves as board president of a local independent school, per his campaign site.
Source: candidate campaign site, roster verified 2026-08-29.
Campaign site →Republican
Josh R. Williams has worked in real estate, public service and operations management and describes himself as not a career politician, per his campaign site.
Source: candidate campaign site, roster verified 2026-08-29.
Campaign site →