1996Final results
1996 election for Vermont Senate District BEN
Vermont State Senate · Vermont
2 seats: Dick Sears (D), Fred Ehrich (R) won.
2 seatsDick SearsDemocrat · winner · incumbent
32.6%9,382
Fred EhrichRepublican · winner · incumbent
26.0%7,472
Seth BongartzDemocrat
24.9%7,170
Jon D. PeasleeRepublican
11.4%3,283
Winfield P. GatesIndependent
3.1%880
Steven L. MannIndependent
2.0%572
28,759 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1996
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Dick Sears (D)Fred Ehrich (R)Seth Bongartz (D)Jon D. Peaslee (R)
Also on the ballot: Winfield P. Gates (Independent), 3.1%; Steven L. Mann (Independent), 2.0%