NSA Applauds Voters In New Mexico and Oregon

Alexandria, VA – The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) is pleased to announce that two counties in the United States both voted to defeat propositions removing the elective nature of the office of sheriff during last Tuesday’s elections. In Los Alamos County, NM, as well as in Multnomah County, OR, voters defeated efforts to make the office of sheriff appointed.

“These referendums are a great victory for these counties as well as the people of America who treasure the ability to elect their local sheriff,” said National Sheriffs’ Association President Greg Champagne, sheriff of St. Charles Parish, LA.  “We would like to thank those citizens in New Mexico and Oregon who recognized the importance of having their elected sheriff accountable directly to them and not politicians who would appoint a sheriff.” 

“The office of sheriff is perhaps the oldest elective office in the United States, having its origins in England where it was recognized centuries ago that the counties or ‘shires’ needed a representative to maintain order and keep the peace. Americans all over this county yearn to have control over their government and make sure it works for them. The office of sheriff is at the core of local control and the accountability of government,” Champagne said.

The National Sheriffs’ Association thanks the numerous state sheriffs’ associations who contributed financially and otherwise to the defeat of these ill-conceived propositions. 

About NSA

The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) is one of the largest associations of law enforcement professionals in the United States, representing more than 3,000 elected sheriffs across the nation, and a total membership of more than 20,000. NSA is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising the level of professionalism among sheriffs, their deputies, and others in the field of criminal justice and public safety. Throughout its seventy-six year history, NSA has served as an information clearinghouse for sheriffs, deputies, chiefs of police, other law enforcement professionals, state governments and the federal government.