Séan Sheehan, a veteran of several state agencies, is Vermont’s new elections director, Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas announced Monday.
Sheehan will head her office’s elections division, which administers state elections and oversees campaign finance reporting and lobbyist disclosures.
He takes the reins in the midst of a busy election season. State candidates must file paperwork before May 30 to appear on the ballot during the August primary. And state and federal general elections are scheduled for Nov. 5.
“I am very excited to welcome Seán, whose arrival means that our Elections team is officially fully staffed, just in time for the 2024 election cycle,” said Copeland Hanzas in her announcement.
Vermont had been without an elections director since early February, after Will Senning, who occupied the role for more than a decade, announced that he was leaving for a job with the federal government. His departure meant that the state held the March presidential primaries without an elections director.
“I am excited to join this small but mighty team,” Sheehan said in a press release. “The Secretary of State’s office — together with town clerks and other partners across the state — have made Vermont a national leader in election administration.”
Sheehan has worked for the state for 12 years, most recently as director of performance at the Agency of Human Services. Previously, he held various roles in the Department of Vermont Health Access and was the staff director for the Vermont Tax Structure Commission.
Neither Sheehan nor Copeland Hanzas were available for an interview Monday afternoon.
