By admin 
Democrat Tyler Kamp conceded the race to become the next sheriff of Maricopa County to the Republican Jerry Sheridan in a statement posted on social media Wednesday evening.
The concession came after new vote counts showed Sheridan retained a lead.
“I am grateful for the incredible support and meaningful discussions I have had with people across the county during my campaign for Maricopa County Sheriff,” Kamp said in the X-post. “We have emphasized the importance of resolving the injunctions, addressing the workforce shortage and combating the fentanyl epidemic. While the results were not what we had hoped for, we must accept the results and recognize who voters chose.”
In response to Kamp’s concession, Sheridan said the real work is now ahead of us. In a statement, he pledged to work with Sheriff’s Office staff, the Board of Supervisors and the community “to rebuild the Sheriff’s Office to better protect the people we are charged with serving.”
Sheridan then addressed voters who did not support him.
“I want you to know that I will work hard to earn your trust and support,” Sheridan said. “I will keep the promises I made during this campaign, and most importantly, treat everyone with dignity and respect, and protect the civil rights of all Maricopa County residents.”
For the first time in at least two decades, there was no incumbent in the general election race for Maricopa County sheriff.
Sheridan was the chief deputy of the Sheriff’s Office under former Sheriff Joe Arpaio. He served in various positions at the Sheriff’s Office for forty years, eventually rising to second in command.
He was endorsed by several law enforcement union groups, including the Arizona Police Association, the Arizona Probation Officers Association and the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Arizona.
Sheridan’s endorsements from politicians included Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz., former Gov. Doug Ducey and former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.
Kamp previously worked as a shift commander, gang enforcement sergeant and homicide detective for the Phoenix Police Department. He is a fifth-generation Maricopa County resident with more than twenty years of law enforcement experience.
His resume includes work for the International Justice Mission, a nonprofit organization dedicated to combating human trafficking. He was research director of the group in Ghana for eight months.
Kamp was endorsed by Phoenix and Mesa city council members, Tempe Mayor Corey Woods, the National Association of Letter Carriers (AFL-CIO) and Mike Crawford, who ran for sheriff in the Republican primary.
Election results in Arizona are unofficial until local and state officials have counted all ballots and certified the results.
In Arizona, voters can drop off their ballots early at the polls on Election Day, and those ballots must still be processed and verified before they can be counted. Full, unofficial results are currently expected between November 15 and 18.
Election 2024: See Arizona election results
Joe Arpaio was at the center of the sheriff’s race because Sheridan was his top deputy
The Sheriff’s Office race became a referendum for voters on whether they wanted to return to the so-called “tough on crime” ways of the Arpaio administration, which ultimately cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars because of the failures of the former sheriff — and Sheridan – to lead a constitutionally compliant agency and follow federal court mandates.
While Sheridan acknowledged that this would likely not be possible, he expressed interest in bringing back something similar to Arpaio’s infamous Tent City Jail, like a barracks.
Kamp promised to continue the trajectory of former sheriff Paul Penzone, the Democrat who ousted Arpaio in 2016. Despite years of efforts, Penzone failed to get the Sheriff’s Office to fully comply with federal court orders regarding an ongoing civil rights case dating back to 2011. to the Arpaio days.
Sheridan, while working for Arpaio, was found in civil contempt of court in connection with Melendres’ racial profiling lawsuit.
The Melendres case began in 2008 when Latino drivers sued the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, claiming they had been racially profiled. U.S. District Court Judge Murray Snow agreed and in 2013 ordered court oversight of the Sheriff’s Office and ordered reforms to eliminate racial profiling.
Like Sheridan, Arpaio was found to be in civil contempt for failing to follow Snow’s orders in the case.
Penzone inherited Snow’s lawsuit and mandates when he took office in 2017. During his seven years in office, he was unable to meet all the requirements of the lawsuit.
After a general election debate, Sheridan was repeatedly asked whether he would defy a federal judge’s orders if elected sheriff. He refused to answer.
Dealing with staff shortages and law enforcement philosophies
Sheridan told voters that Penzone’s leadership led to increased staff shortages, something he said would have been exacerbated by a Camp administration.
Sheridan said he was the best candidate to improve recruitment and retention because he would work to restore a sense of pride among employees.
Kamp also pledged to work to improve recruitment, specifically targeting women and veterans, while also focusing on retention.
Sheridan has said he would “protect the civil rights of everyone here in Maricopa County because that is the way the Constitution is written.”
He described that position as a “constitutional sheriff” and said, “That shouldn’t scare anyone in this country.”
In recent years, a right-wing “constitutional sheriffs” ideology has emerged. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks extremist groups and movements, defines the ideology as one that suggests sheriffs have the power to bypass America’s system of government checks and balances and make their own decisions about which laws are constitutional . In the US, the judiciary has the power to determine whether laws are permissible under the Constitution.
In further describing what he meant by being a “constitutional sheriff,” Sheridan said he supported this the actions of a New Mexico sheriff who refused to enforce a 2023 emergency order from the governor that would have suspended the right to carry firearms in public in Albuquerque.
“The sheriff stood up and said, ‘You can’t do that. That’s unconstitutional.’ That’s how it works. OK? In my mind, this is how this works,” Sheridan said.
Kamp praised Penzone’s use of advisory boards to build relationships with communities and improve relations with Latinos and other groups that he said had lost confidence in the Sheriff’s Office. He said he believed in an empathetic approach to law enforcement.
“As sheriff you must have empathy for your organization and the community you serve,” Kamp said during a recent debate. “You have to understand what their perspective is. Once you realize that, you can provide better public safety for everyone.”
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa County sheriff’s race: Camp concedes to Sheridan