Editing Orleans County, Vermont (section)

==Government==
As in all Vermont counties, there is a small executive function that is mostly consolidated at the state level. Remaining county government is judicial. There are no "county taxes."

In 2007, median property taxes in the county were $1,940, placing it 265 out of 1,817 counties in the nation with populations over 20,000.<ref>{{cite book | author = McLean, Dan |title = Property tax bills among highest | publisher = Burlington Free Press | date = December 17, 2008}}</ref>

The budget for 2006 was $428,612.51. Town taxes accounted for over 65% of this money. The budget was all fulfilled by the state. Almost 32% of the money was spent on courthouse personnel. Over 22% of the money was spent on the Sheriff Department's expenses.<ref>2006 Financial Report of Orleans County General Fund, ''The Chronicle'', March 7, 2007, page 26</ref>

===Executive===
The [[Side judge|Assistant, or "Side," Judges]], Superior Court, approve the budget for county expenses.
* Assistant Judge (elected) - Robert Goodby
* Assistant Judge (elected) - Benjamin M. Batchelder
* Road commissioners (appointed for one-year terms by the Superior Court)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.leg.state.vt.us/statutes/fullsection.cfm?Title=19&Chapter=009&Section=00970|title=Vermont Statutes Online|website=www.leg.state.vt.us}}</ref> Citizens may appeal to this commission when they believe that a town has failed to properly maintain a road or a bridge.
** Shawn Austin
** Thomas Berrier
** Dale Carpenter, Jr.

===Judicial===
The Superior, Family and Probate courts are all located at 247 Main Street, Newport Vermont. The court system is part of the Northern Division.

The judge of the District Court is rotated to another county periodically. The state Supreme Court must approve assignments.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/about-vermont-judiciary/judicial-assignments |title=Judge Rotation Schedule |access-date=August 6, 2017 |date=August 6, 2017 |publisher=Vermont Judiciary }}</ref>

With one judge, the District Court can hear up to three jury-empaneled trials per month. In 2017, there were 40 people, pleading innocent, and awaiting trial.<ref>{{Cite news | first=Joseph | last=Gresser | title=Defendants can have long jail wait before trial | url=https://bartonchronicle.com/defendants-can-long-jail-wait-trial/| newspaper=The Chronicle | location=Barton, Vermont | pages= 1A,20A–21A | date=July 26, 2017 }}</ref>

[[Vermont court system#Superior courts|Superior Court]] presiding judge (appointed by the state) - [[Howard E. VanBenthuysen]]
* Superior Court clerk - Gaye Paquette
* Court Operations Manager - Julie Bronson
* Case Manager- Sally Carruthers

[[Vermont court system#Family courts|Family court]] presiding judge - [[Robert R. Bent]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/family/index.htm#Orleans |title= Vermont Family Court: General Information|website=www.vermontjudiciary.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211165338/http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/family/index.htm#Orleans |archive-date=February 11, 2009}}</ref><!---current info does not agree with this ref-->
* [[Magistrate#United States|Magistrate]] - Barbara Zander
* [[Side judge|Assistant Judges]] - Benjamin M. Batchelder and Curt Hardy
* [[County Clerk]] (appointed) - Susan Pion
* [[Probate Court|Probate Judge]] (elected) - Angela Ross<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/probate/probateinfo/index.htm#Orleans |title= Vermont Probate Information|website=www.vermontjudiciary.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090308140145/http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/probate/probateinfo/index.htm#Orleans |archive-date=March 8, 2009}}</ref>

The District Court is located at 217 Main Street, Newport, Vermont, as is the [[State Attorney]].<ref>and the state offices of Human Services</ref>
The [[Vermont court system#District courts|District court]] presiding judge is Howard E. VanBenthuysen.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/district/index.htm#Orleans |title= Home Page of District Court|website=www.vermontjudiciary.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090308123525/http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/courts/district/index.htm#Orleans |archive-date=March 8, 2009}}</ref> The Court Manager is Gaye Paquette. The State's Attorney (elected) is Farzana Leyva.

The sheriff's office is located at 5578 US Rte 5, Newport, Vermont. The [[Sheriffs in the United States|sheriff]] (elected) is Jennifer Harlow. She was appointed originally by governor Phil Scott to fill the remaining vacancy from Kirk Martin, who retired.<ref>{{cite book | author = Creaser, Richard |title = There's a new sheriff in town | publisher = the Chronicle | date = October 22, 2008}}</ref>

The sheriff's department made national news in 2012, when a driver of a large tractor deliberately drove over and wrecked at least six cruisers, out of a fleet of 11. The driver was apparently annoyed at having been previously arrested by the [[Newport (city), Vermont|city of Newport]] police, and not the sheriff.<ref>[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/roger-pion-vt-man-accused-of-crushing-cop-cars-with-farm-tractor-due-in-court/ Roger Pion, Vt. man accused of crushing cop cars with farm tractor, due in court]. CBS News (August 3, 2012). Retrieved on 2014-04-12.</ref><ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/us/50k-bail-for-vermont-man-accused-of-crushing-cop-cars-with-tractor/ $50K bail for Vermont man accused of crushing cop cars with tractor]. Fox News. Retrieved on April 12, 2014.</ref><ref>Mach, Andrew. (August 3, 2012) [http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/03/13103499-vermont-man-uses-tractor-to-flatten-8-police-cars?lite Vermont man uses tractor to flatten 8 police cars - U.S. News]. Usnews.nbcnews.com. Retrieved on 2014-04-12.</ref>

===Legislators===
The [[Orleans Vermont Senate District, 2022-2032|Orleans Senate district]] includes most of Orleans County, as well as parts of [[Caledonia County, Vermont|Caledonia County]] and [[Franklin County, Vermont|Franklin County]]. It is represented in the [[Vermont Senate]] by [[Samuel A. Douglass]] ([[Republican party (United States)|R]]).

The [[Essex Vermont Senate District, 2022-2032|Essex Senate district]] includes the Towns of Derby, Holland, and Morgan, the City of Newport, all in Orleans County, as well as parts of [[Caledonia County, Vermont|Caledonia County]] and [[Essex County, Vermont|Essex County]]. It is represented in the [[Vermont Senate]] by [[Russ Ingalls]] ([[Republican party (United States)|R]]).

===Elections===
In [[1828 United States presidential election in Vermont|1828]], Orleans County was won by [[National Republican Party]] candidate [[John Quincy Adams]].

In [[1832 United States presidential election in Vermont|1832]], the county was won by [[Anti-Masonic Party]] candidate [[William Wirt (Attorney General)|William Wirt]].

From [[William Henry Harrison]] in [[1836 United States presidential election in Vermont|1836]] to [[Winfield Scott]] in [[1852 United States presidential election in Vermont|1852]], the county voted for the [[Whig Party (United States)|Whig Party]] candidates.

From [[John C. Frémont]] in [[1856 United States presidential election in Vermont|1856]] to [[Richard Nixon]] in [[1960 United States presidential election in Vermont|1960]] (barring [[1912 United States presidential election in Vermont|1912]], where the county was won by [[Progressive Party (United States, 1912)|Progressive Party]] candidate and former president [[Theodore Roosevelt]]), the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] had a 104-year winning streak in the county.

In [[1964 United States presidential election in Vermont|1964]], Orleans County was won by [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] incumbent President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], who became not only the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Orleans County, but to win the state of Vermont overall. Following Johnson's victory in 1964, the county returned to voting for Republican candidates for another 20 years, starting with Richard Nixon in [[1968 United States presidential election in Vermont|1968]] and ending with [[George H. W. Bush]] in [[1988 United States presidential election in Vermont|1988]].

[[George W. Bush]] won Orleans County in [[2000 United States presidential election in Vermont|2000]], the only time the county would back a Republican between [[1992 United States presidential election in Vermont|1992]] and [[2020 United States presidential election in Vermont|2020]]. [[Donald Trump]] narrowly lost the county by a margin of 26 votes in [[2016 United States presidential election in Vermont|2016]]. Trump would finally flip the county back to Republicans in [[2024 United States presidential election in Vermont|2024]].

Normally voting among the most conservative counties in Vermont, the county overwhelmingly supported the Democratic presidential candidate in 2008 with nearly 63% of the vote. No town supported the Republican opponent. Nevertheless, the county elected only Republicans to the state senate and legislature and voted overwhelmingly for a Republican governor and lieutenant governor, yet Democratic for all other state offices.<ref>{{cite book |title = An Obama sweep, and a conservative upset | publisher = Burlington Free Press | date = November 7, 2008}}</ref><!---please understand that this section was not a WP:PR section for any particular candidate - merely a statement of ticket splitting--->
With one exception in the legislature for one district, the vote was not close for any office.

A record seventy-three percent of the voters turned out for the general election in 2000.<ref>{{cite book |title = Pollina easily outdistances Symington in county | publisher = the Chronicle | date = November 5, 2008}}</ref>

{{PresHead|place=Orleans County, Vermont|whig=no|source1=<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS | title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections }}</ref>}}
<!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP/Whig vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} -->
{{PresRow|2024|Republican|7,233|7,006|526|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2020|Democratic|6,512|7,147|437|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2016|Democratic|5,159|5,185|1,702|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2012|Democratic|4,306|7,117|269|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2008|Democratic|4,482|7,998|291|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2004|Democratic|5,666|6,330|246|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|2000|Republican|5,799|5,472|861|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1996|Democratic|3,114|5,137|1,735|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|3,572|4,721|3,220|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1988|Republican|5,257|4,224|130|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|5,966|3,294|131|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1980|Republican|4,473|3,671|1,043|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1976|Republican|4,075|3,561|155|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|4,906|2,793|63|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1968|Republican|4,055|2,762|301|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1964|Democratic|3,009|4,898|0|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1960|Republican|5,027|3,354|0|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1956|Republican|5,344|2,052|0|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1952|Republican|5,830|2,003|25|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1948|Republican|3,775|2,204|25|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1944|Republican|3,801|2,657|0|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1940|Republican|4,480|3,294|15|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1936|Republican|5,038|2,662|20|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1932|Republican|5,132|2,530|67|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1928|Republican|5,561|1,320|14|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1924|Republican|5,006|619|252|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1920|Republican|4,400|738|39|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1916|Republican|2,758|1,047|48|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1912|Progressive|1,475|628|1,952|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1908|Republican|2,535|384|53|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1904|Republican|2,563|328|45|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1900|Republican|2,749|441|35|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1896|Republican|3,412|442|102|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1892|Republican|2,358|631|100|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1888|Republican|3,036|724|368|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1884|Republican|2,476|681|143|Vermont}}
{{PresRow|1880|Republican|2,911|804|27|Vermont}}
|}