Benton County voters back Holloway for sheriff

Shawn Holloway
Shawn Holloway

ROGERS -- Benton County voters kept Shawn Holloway as their sheriff in Tuesday's Republican primary election.

Holloway defeated challenger Glenn Latham, receiving almost 80 percent of the votes with all precincts counted.

According to the results, 18,255 voters cast ballots during the election, which is 11.9 percent of the county's 152,826 registered voters.

Holloway is unopposed in the November general election.

"I want to thank the voters who elected me in my first race and have now approved of what I've done," Holloway said.

Holloway said he'll have more time for long-range planning in the four-year term he will begin in January.

"Four years makes it easier to plan," he said. "I definitely plan on expanding our inmate work program, and there will be other things we're doing or want to do."

The two men faced each other in a race for sheriff for the second time in two years. In 2016, Holloway ran as a Republican and Latham as an independent. Holloway won with 72 percent of the vote. The office has an annual salary of $100,555, and the term will increase from two years to four years beginning in 2019.

Latham, 47, who lives near Gentry, said his focus as sheriff would have been to serve the rural areas of the county.

Holloway, 46, of Rogers, said he has increased the number of deputies in the field and increased the time they spend patrolling in rural areas.

By the numbers

Benton County

Sheriff

Republican Primary

• Shawn Holloway: 11,736 (78 percent)

• Glenn Latham: 3,288 (22 percent)

Surveyor

Republican Primary

• Micheal James: 10,319 (74 percent)

• Grant Nevill: 3,567 (26 percent)

Justice of the Peace Distrist 1

Republican Primary

• Mike McKenzie: 701 (62 percent)

• Dale King: 432 (38 percent)

Justice of the Peace District 11

Republican Primary

• Dustin Todd: 660 (59 percent)

• Kelli M. Latham: 467 (41 percent)

Justice of the Peace District 15

Republican Primary

• Joel Edwards: 782 (69 percent)

• Jamie Sheppard: 353 (31 percent)

For latest results, go to nwadg.com. These were final, unofficial results.

He added one way he's working to keep deputies in the field is by opening substations throughout the county. The sheriff's office has substations in the Prairie Creek area, Avoca, Siloam Springs and Gravette and is looking at other locations, he said.

Benton County voters also had a choice for surveyor on the ballot. Micheal James of Gentry, the incumbent, easily defeated Grant Nevill of Bentonville. The winner is unopposed in the general election. The office has no official duties or budget.

Quorum Court

Voters in three Quorum Court districts saw races on the Republican primary ballot. Justices of the peace are paid on a per meeting basis -- $230 for Quorum Court and Committee of the Whole meetings and $144 for other committees they are members of -- and serve two-year terms.

District 1

Incumbent Mike McKenzie defeated former Justice of the Peace Dale King in the Republican Party primary. McKenzie has no opponent in the general election.

McKenzie, 67, of Rogers, said the Quorum Court is focused on how to pay for the proposed $30 million courts building. He said he doesn't favor a sales tax increase to pay for the building, and he wants any plan to be approved by voters. McKenzie said county roads are a bigger concern in District 1 than the courts building.

King, 78, of Garfield, said he supports the county's proposed new courts building. He said if the county hopes to get voter approval of the $30 million project, county officials need to do more to communicate with voters. King also said keeping the county roads maintained is a priority.

District 11

Dustin Todd beat Kelli Latham in the Republican primary with almost 60 percent of the vote for the open District 11 justice of the peace seat on the Benton County Quorum Court.

Bob Bland, the first-term incumbent, decided not to seek re-election. The winner will face Democratic Party candidate Susie Kuilan in the general election.

Todd, 29, lives in the Decatur area. He has worked with the Benton County Sheriff's Office and the Bentonville Police Department. He said he wanted to get back to the public service aspect he enjoyed while working in law enforcement.

Todd said he wants the county to be practical with the courts building. He said he favors a hybrid solution that will include some county money along with a short term sales tax with a sunset clause to pay for the building.

Latham, 39, of Gentry, was born in Rogers and is a lifelong resident of Northwest Arkansas. Latham said she wants to learn how the county Road Department operates and to represent the rural residents in that process.

District 15

Republican voters selected Joel Edwards over Jamie Sheppard with Edwards receiving almost 70 percent of the votes.

Edwards will face Democrat Asele Mack in November.

Edwards, 50, of Centerton, is seeking a second term on the Quorum Court. He said the experiences of a friend serving on the Washington County Quorum Court spurred his interest in county government.`

Edwards said when he started following the Benton County Quorum Court prior to being elected, the justices of the peace were working on the county's annual budget and he became interested in the debate over a new courts building. He said the courts building project remains the biggest issue facing the Quorum Court, but he's concerned the county hasn't done much to educate people about the need for the project and the options for paying for a new building.

Sheppard, 37, of Centerton, worked for five years as a deputy sheriff for the Benton County Sheriff's Office where her husband, Sgt. John Sheppard, still works. She said she has long been interested in local government, but couldn't run for a county office while employed by the Sheriff's Office.

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Mike McKenzie

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Dustin Todd

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Joel Edwards

NW News on 05/23/2018

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