Orange County Sample Ballot & Voter Guide 2026

Jacob Held is on the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list (updated Aug. 27, 2026) as the Republican candidate for Orange County Sheriff on the November 3, 2026 ballot. Jacob Held is a corporal with the Orange County Sheriff's Department and the Republican nominee for Orange County sheriff, per the White River Valley Herald. He faces Democratic nominee Sean McRae of Bethel in November.

McRae has more than a decade of public safety experience with the Orange County Sheriff's Office, starting as a dispatcher and advancing to deputy, and currently works as a police officer, licensed EMT, and Assistant State Fire Marshal, per the campaign site. McRae has also provided emergency medical care with First Branch Ambulance in Chelsea for more than eight years, per the campaign site.

Jt Dodge is a certified candidate for high bailiff of Orange County on the Vermont Secretary of State's 2026 general election candidate list. Resides in Newbury, Vermont. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

Colin L. Seaman currently serves as state's attorney of Orange County, Vermont, per the Vermont Department of State's Attorneys and Sheriffs office page. Currently serves as interim state's attorney for Orange County, per the Department of State's Attorneys and Sheriffs office page. Resides in Burlington, Vermont. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

Laurel Mackin currently serves as assistant judge of Orange County, Vermont, per the Vermont Assistant Judges directory. Appointed assistant judge by Governor Phil Scott in 2019 after holding leadership positions at Dartmouth College, the Global Health Council and the town of Thetford, per Vermont Assistant Judges (vtassistantjudges.org). Earned bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and resides in Thetford, per the same source. Resides in Thetford, Vermont. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

Joyce E. Mckeeman currently serves as assistant judge of Orange County, Vermont, per the Vermont Assistant Judges directory. Elected assistant judge in 2010 and re-elected in 2014 and 2018, per Vermont Assistant Judges (vtassistantjudges.org). Taught economics, American history, American government and critical thinking at community and four-year colleges for over twenty years and serves as president of the Vermont Association of County Judges, per the same source. Resides in Corinth, Vermont. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

Kathryn A.C. Kennedy currently serves as probate judge of Orange County, Vermont, per the Vermont Judiciary probate division page. Resides in Braintree, Vermont. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

John K. Benson is a professional engineer and retired managing partner at the engineering firm DuBois & King who chairs the Brookfield Selectboard, according to VTDigger. Governor Phil Scott appointed him to the Orange County Senate seat in January 2026 to fill a vacancy, per the governor's office. Benson. No campaign website was found as of September 25, 2026.

Priestley has represented Orange-2 in the Vermont House since her first election in November 2022, with a background in technology, economic development and community engagement, per the campaign site. She has more than a decade of experience working in Vermont communities, per the campaign site.

Michael "Mike" Tagliavia was self-employed for most of his life in the pool service industry and moved permanently to Vermont in 2019, per the White River Valley Herald. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Michael "Mike" Tagliavia.

Gregory Wilson of Vershire is the Democratic candidate for Vermont House, Orange-1 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Gregory Wilson.

Nicholas Dilorenzo of Bradford is the Republican candidate for Vermont House, Orange-2 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. Dilorenzo says on his campaign site that he is running as a Republican to represent Vermont's Orange-2 district on a platform of reduced government spending, public safety and support for small businesses, per the campaign site.

Lance V. Mills of Fairlee is the Democratic candidate for Vermont House, Orange-2 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Lance V. Mills.

Fran Covey of Williamstown is the Republican candidate for Vermont House, Orange-3 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. Covey, of Williamstown, is a former Williamstown select board member, per criticalreport.substack.com (2026 VT state house primaries report). No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Fran Covey.

Susan Culp, of Newbury, serves as chair of the Newbury Selectboard and is running as an independent candidate in the Orange-Caledonia House race, according to the Valley News. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Susan Culp.

Aiden Boyd Otterman, 17, of West Topsham, is a senior at Thetford Academy and the great-grandson of Harvey B. Otterman Jr., who held the Orange-Caledonia House seat from 2000 to 2008, according to the Valley News. He has served on the Vermont State Youth Council since 2024, chairing it in 2025, and was Vermont's sole participant in the Yale Young Global Scholars program, the paper reported. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Aiden Boyd Otterman.

Tom Otterman is the founder of Otterman Surveying and Septic Design and has worked in surveying and septic design for more than 45 years, according to his campaign site. He lives in West Topsham and is the great-uncle of fellow candidate Aiden Otterman, per the Valley News.

Mattheis works as a painter and drywaller and moved to Vermont in 2017 after attending Vermont Law School, settling in Randolph in 2019, per the campaign site. He was elected Randolph town clerk and treasurer and now serves on the Randolph Selectboard, per the campaign site.

Lance Ryan of Roxbury is one of two Republican nominees on the certified Nov. 3, 2026 general-election ballot for the two-seat Orange-Washington-Addison Vermont House district, per the Vermont Secretary of State's candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Lance Ryan.

Larry Satcowitz is the incumbent Vermont state representative for the Orange-Washington-Addison District, according to the Vermont General Assembly's 2026 member roster. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Larry Satcowitz.

Stephen W. Webster of Randolph is the Republican candidate for Vermont House, Orange-Washington-Addison District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Stephen W. Webster.

Battah has worked more than 25 years in the nonprofit sector, including founding an after-school tutoring program and working internationally in Nepal, Thailand and the Middle East, per the campaign site. She holds a master's degree in Conflict Transformation and Sustainable Development from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, per the campaign site. She serves as board chair of Good Samaritan Haven and on the Barre Town school board's curriculum committee, per the campaign site.

Galfetti is a Barre Town business owner who founded G Force Painting in 2007 and has run its Vermont operation since 2017, per the campaign site. She holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Vermont and has represented the district in the Vermont House since 2023, per the campaign site. She serves on the Barre Town Development Review Board and the Turning Point Center executive board, per the campaign site.

David Soucy was appointed by Governor Phil Scott in April 2026 to fill a vacant Washington-Orange House seat, replacing Topper McFaun, per the governor's office. He previously served as a state senator representing Rutland County. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for David Soucy.

Emily Wheeler-Reynolds is a business owner, per the Times Argus. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Emily Wheeler-Reynolds.

John K. O'Brien of Tunbridge is the Democratic candidate for Vermont House, Windsor-Orange-1 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. John K. O'Brien is a sitting member for the district, per the Vermont House of Representatives's official member directory (legislature.vermont.gov). No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for John K. O'Brien.

Bruce Post of Royalton is the Republican candidate for Vermont House, Windsor-Orange-1 District on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Vermont Secretary of State's general election candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Bruce Post.

Dee Gish is a candidate for the Vermont House of Representatives from the Windsor-Orange-2 District, representing Norwich, Sharon, Strafford, and Thetford, per her campaign site.

Lauren Morando Rhim, of Norwich, is an education advocate with experience on the Norwich School Board, per the Valley News. No campaign website was found as of September 11, 2026; the Secretary of State's candidate list is the only verifiable source for Lauren Morando Rhim.