By LAYLA KALINEN
Eagle Times Staff
WINDSOR COUNTY, Vt. — With less than two weeks before the Aug. 13, primaries, voters in the six Windsor County Districts will have nine candidates, five Democrats and four Republicans, to choose from in the race for the open seats in the Vermont State Senate. A third seat opened when Richard ‘Dick’ McCormick, 79, announced earlier in March, after 30 years of legislative service, he would not be running for re-election. McCormick has served in the Vermont State Senate since 1989, with a brief hiatus from 2003 through 2007.
Democratic voters can pick three of their favored out of five candidates with three newcomers, Joe Major, Hartford Town Treasurer; Marc Nemeth an attorney of Royalton and Justin Tuthill of Pomfret all dueling against incumbents Alison H. Clarkson of Woodstock and Rebecca White of Hartford.
Tuthill ran as a Republican in 2020 losing against Miriam Berry of Essex Junction.
On the Republican end of the voter opportunities for the Vermont Senate, four candidates are vying for the three open circles to fill in on the primary election ballot.
They include Andrea Murray and Jack Williams both of Weathersfield, Jonathan Gleason of Ludlow and Robert Ruhlin of Cavendish.
Each political party gets to choose their three candidates on Aug. 13, for the final senatorial face-off in the general election in November.
Candidates for the House of Representatives for the six districts of Windsor County have several uncontested seats in both conservative and liberal parties.
District 1 with two open seats, with Democrats John Bartholomew and Elizabeth Burrows running unopposed.
District 2 has Democrat Marc Yuengling running uncontested to succeed Rep. John Arrison of Weathersfield and Republican candidate VL Coffin, a U.S. Army Veteran from Cavendish, is also uncontested.
District 3 has a three-way competition with Republican newcomer Judy Stern facing off against two Democratic incumbents Alice Emmons and Kristi Morris for one of the two open seats.
District 4 has one Democrat, Heather Suprenant, running unopposed on the Democratic Primary ballot and District 5 also has one Democrat, Charlie Kimball
Running unopposed.
District 5 has one Democrat Charlie Kimball, running unopposed and District 6 with two open seats with unopposed democrats Kevin Christie and Esme Cole running for Vermont House of Reps.
In the WDR-WDH District of the Chester, Grafton and Athens, one newcomer, Republican Tom Charleton, former minister and currently an artisan carpenter,
faces off Democratic incumbent Heather Chase, both of Chester.
District WDR-WDH-BEN which includes Andover, Weston, Londonderry and Winhall, has one Republican candidate Jan Payne, running unopposed for the open seat in the Vermont House of Representatives.
Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders of Burlington has one challenger for the U.S. Senate, Republican contender Gerald Malloy of Weathersfield.
Democratic incumbent for the U.S. House Of Representatives Becca Balint of Brattleboro faces off Republican newcomer Marc Coester of Westminster.
Of the 30 seats in the Vermont Senate 2024, the partisan composition is 21 Democrats, seven Republicans and one progressive.
Of the 150 seats currently held in Vermont House of Representatives 2024 the partisan composition is 107 Democrats, 37 Republican, two Vermont Progressives, one Libertarian and three Independent representatives.
The primary election is Tuesday, Aug. 13.
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5.
