2026 New York General Election

Julia Descoteaux

Buket Urgen

“I try to lead with data and examples,” Descoteaux said. She moved from New York City to Stanford during the COVID-19 pandemic and now serves as town supervisor. “I think of myself as a very community-minded and neighbor-minded leader.”

Stanford wins Towns Association honors

Julia Descoteaux moved from New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stanford supervisor pushes transparency in first year

At the Herald’s first Meet the Candidates forum in Stanford, on Oct. 14, two different portraits of how to run Stanford came into focus in the race for Town Supervisor: one plan-driven, the other rooted in skepticism of the town’s Comprehensive Plan.
Julia Descoteaux, a Democratic Town Board member and digital-marketing consultant who moved to Stanford full-time during the pandemic, cast the Supervisor as chief fiscal officer and coalition builder. “The role of the Supervisor is fiscal responsibility,” she told the crowd. “A town is not unlike a team. We need to be high functioning, you need to communicate effectively, you need to lead with trust and honesty.”

Stanford Supervisor Race Pits Two Visions for the Future - The New Pine Plains Herald

Descoteaux, elected to the board in 2023, pointed to the unglamorous work of budgeting and committees: liaising with the Conservation Advisory Committee as it finished the Natural Resources Inventory, heading up the Water Quality Committee, and helping to organize the Sparc Park playground rebuild. Corporate stops at Toyota, L’Oréal and Walmart, she said, taught her to manage “large teams and big budgets.”

Julia works as a digital marketing consultant. She previously worked at Toyota, L’Oréal, and Walmart.

Stanford Supervisor Race Pits Two Visions for the Future

STANFORD — Last fall, Julia Descoteaux campaigned for and won election as Stanford’s supervisor — but she says she does not want Town Hall to feel political. Instead, she wants it to be accessible and transparent, qualities that recently earned Stanford top honors from the New York Association of Towns (NYAT).

Town Board Members:

Supervisor Julia Descoteaux (845) 868 1310, option #2
[email protected]

Councilman Eric Haims (Deputy Supervisor)

Elected Officials – Town of Stanford

Julia currently serves as Stanford town supervisor and won election to the office. She was elected to the Stanford Town Board in 2023.

Conservation Advisory Commission – Town of Stanford

As of October 26, 2026, Julia Descoteaux’s website did not contain information on this issue.

Economy

Plans to seek grant opportunities to continue investing in recreation facilities and further community engagement.

“I truly think our community is in a really solid place thanks to our outgoing supervisor and previous Town Boards. We have the lowest tax levy of any town in Dutchess County as well as incredible civic engagement around causes like natural resource protection and recreation enhancement, but we can do more to support families, our aging population, and future growth while maintaining affordability.

I look forward to continuing to support the work of the Zoning Commission, which is tasked with updating our zoning laws to reflect our updated Comprehensive Plan while protecting the rural character of our town and property owners rights. I am focused on furthering community engagement & seeking out grant opportunities to continue to invest in our recreation facilities that support all community members.”

Julia Descoteaux – Stanford Democrats – Stanford, NY

Public Services

Supports updating zoning laws under the Comprehensive Plan while protecting the town’s rural character and property owners’ rights.

Housing & Urban Development

Public Safety

Transportation & Infrastructure

Said the Natural Resources Inventory is important for keeping the community sustainable.

That philosophical divide surfaced again over the Natural Resources Inventory and the CAC. Roche said the work “has gone too far,” worrying that environmental data could be “used against property owners” around Upton Lake and elsewhere. Descoteaux called the information “really, really important… to keep our community sustainable.”