Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George has held off a challenger in the Democratic primary race for the top prosecutor post in the state’s most populated county.
Voters also decided Tuesday other races in countywide law enforcement posts in Vermont.
George garnered 15,931 votes in primary balloting, finishing ahead of challenger Bram Kranichfeld, who collected 14,923 votes, according to unofficial results from Vermont Secretary of State’s Office.
No candidates filed in the Republican or Progressive party primaries, appearing to clear the way for George to earn a third, four-year term in the office.
George has made headlines during her tenure with her push for progressive criminal justice reform policies. Kranichfeld campaigned on the need for both compassion as well as greater accountability when handling criminal cases.
Kranichfeld currently serves as the Franklin County state’s attorney. He opted not to run for that post this year, throwing his hat in the ring for the state position in Chittenden County where he resides.
Neither George nor Kranichfeld could immediately be reached Wednesday morning for comment.
Also in Chittenden County primary election results, as VTDigger reported Tuesday night, incumbent Chittenden County Sheriff Dan Gamelin, a Democrat, fended off a primary challenge from Kevin Bloom, who runs a music studio and works for an audio software company.
The two candidates campaigned on different visions for the department. Gamelin touted his experience in the department while Bloom pitched reforms to how law enforcement work is done.
According to unofficial results from the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office, Gamelin had 15,876 votes, compared to 12,135 votes for Bloom.
Like the Chittenden County state’s attorney race, no candidates filed for either the Republican or Progressive primaries.
In other closely watched countywide law enforcement-related races Tuesday night, Claude Weyant prevailed in a three-way Democratic primary race for the four-year sheriff’s post in Windsor County.
Weyant has been the chief deputy of the Windsor County Sheriff’s Department. He is currently running the day-to-day operations of the office.
Sheriff Ryan Palmer stepped back from overseeing the day-to-day operations of the department earlier this year following his arrest on several charges, including lewd and lascivious conduct and soliciting prostitution. Palmer has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Palmer did not seek reelection.
Weyant collected 3,666 votes in Tuesday’s balloting, besting Christopher Norton, a Windham County Sheriff’s Department sergeant, who had 1,726 votes, and Joshua Lake, a Bellows Falls Police Department patrolman, who had 1,563 votes, according to unofficial results from the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office.
Just days before Tuesday’s primary election, the village of Bellows Falls placed Lake on administrative leave from his job in Bellows Falls after a letter was issued by both the WIndham County State’s Attorney and Vermont Attorney General’s Office raising questions about the reliability of statements by him.
Weyant, of Windsor, now faces Republican Richard King, of Springfield, a lieutenant in the Windsor County Sheriff’s Department, in the November general election.
In Franklin County, there was a three-way race in the Republican primary to serve as the next sheriff.
Chad Miles, a lieutenant in the department, garnered 1,057 votes, finishing ahead of Andre Labier who had 589 votes and James Lynch with 318 votes, according to the unofficial results from the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office.
Incumbent Franklin County Sheriff John Grismore did not seek reelection. Grismore had his law enforcement certification revoked in 2023 over a use-of-force policy violation.
Grismore had also been criminally charged in connection with that incident with simple assault for allegedly kicking a person in custody. However, following two mistrials with jurors unable to reach unanimous verdicts, the prosecutor dropped the case.
No candidates filed to run on the Democratic or Progressive sides on the ballot, appearing to clear the way for Miles in the general election in November.
