Time for some to drop out...

I don't see the point in anyone dropping out now. The ballots have already been put together, so they'll be on there regardless and most people will vote based on the ballot, not based on who they heard is still in the race.

Thats true, but if there is an announcement that someone is dropping from the race, then that means that person can no longer be voted for. Dont you recall the last election. The same thing happened that COULD happen this time. Unless you want the current Sheriff in office again for another 4 years then this wont be a good thing. More people running, more votes that are swayed, and he could be right back in. Thats why Josh Sconiers dropped out. Others should follow suit, to give the top runners a better chance at making a differance in our county.

Thats true, but if there is an announcement that someone is dropping from the race, then that means that person can no longer be voted for. Dont you recall the last election. The same thing happened that COULD happen this time. Unless you want the current Sheriff in office again for another 4 years then this wont be a good thing. More people running, more votes that are swayed, and he could be right back in. Thats why Josh Sconiers dropped out. Others should follow suit, to give the top runners a better chance at making a differance in our county.

With all due respect, it is pretty arrogant to demand someone exit a race they have a right to be in. I recently read an editorial in the Tallahassee newspaper bemoaning the lack of candidates in local races and the need for more civic responsibility on individual's parts to offer their services to their fellow citizens. Anyone who has ever ran for public office will testify that it is a grueling experience and not for the faint of heart. So, while I may not agree with their stance on the issues or support their candidacy, I applaud each candidate for having the care for their civic duty to run. And further, I suggest that talk that they should retire from a race in order to achieve your desired result is not very long sighted from a civic point of view. If you want Johnson out of office, carefully pick the candidate that most closely matches what you want in a Sheriff and then do what you can (money, in-kind, talking to people, etc) to help that candidate win. That approach will garner more respect than trying to shame people out of exercising their constitutional right to seek office.

By the way, I want Johnson out of office as much as you I think.

Ballots

That is unfortunate if the ballots are printed. I agree that several of the candidates should do what is right for the people and throw their support to one of the front runners. The possibility of Johnson winning re-election is still there. The better odds that the two leading candidates get most of the votes will prevent R.J. from squeeking by by a small percent. I have grown more comfortable that his time is just about up, but stranger things have happened...I am still concerned as members of the department are.

I know several (WCSO Members) have begun to voice their opinions privately to certain citizens and I really think that more need to "come out" publicly and give the voters a clear picture that new leadership is needed. If Johnson gets re-elected, you'll have no one to blame but yourselves. I know this is difficult but if you speak to the right people, R.J. would be very foolish to try to punish you. Just a thought...

So then, why doesn't everyone just spend their time spreading the knowledge about Mr. Johnson's issues... making sure your fellow constituents are aware of the problems and unlikely to vote for him, instead of trying to talk other people into dropping out? At this point, only people who don't have a clue about all the problems are actually going to vote for him (minus a few who just don't care), so go educate them.

With all due respect, it is pretty arrogant to demand someone exit a race they have a right to be in. I recently read an editorial in the Tallahassee newspaper bemoaning the lack of candidates in local races and the need for more civic responsibility on individual's parts to offer their services to their fellow citizens. Anyone who has ever ran for public office will testify that it is a grueling experience and not for the faint of heart. So, while I may not agree with their stance on the issues or support their candidacy, I applaud each candidate for having the care for their civic duty to run. And further, I suggest that talk that they should retire from a race in order to achieve your desired result is not very long sighted from a civic point of view. If you want Johnson out of office, carefully pick the candidate that most closely matches what you want in a Sheriff and then do what you can (money, in-kind, talking to people, etc) to help that candidate win. That approach will garner more respect than trying to shame people out of exercising their constitutional right to seek office.

By the way, I want Johnson out of office as much as you I think.

Yeah like the carefully picked last election. I was not rude or arrogant in my posting. If you look at the numbers when the race is over there are going to be some and I did not even mention names that are not going to pull in votes. The problem is so many run, heck one guy doesnt even live in this county and is running, but no one seems to have a problem with that either. I too think its great that they all are running, but some are going to stand a better chance than others, and I dont want to see what happened durning the last election where they swayed the votes. There were so many in that election that it sent him right back in. People dont turn out in this county to vote like they should, so when you have 9 people running on one ticket it does make a differance. If they want a change for the better, and thats their honest intention they could work together to accomplish that and keep him from getting back in there. But they all are thinking "I am going to win" and thats not reality.

That is unfortunate if the ballots are printed. I agree that several of the candidates should do what is right for the people and throw their support to one of the front runners. The possibility of Johnson winning re-election is still there. The better odds that the two leading candidates get most of the votes will prevent R.J. from squeeking by by a small percent. I have grown more comfortable that his time is just about up, but stranger things have happened...I am still concerned as members of the department are.

I know several (WCSO Members) have begun to voice their opinions privately to certain citizens and I really think that more need to "come out" publicly and give the voters a clear picture that new leadership is needed. If Johnson gets re-elected, you'll have no one to blame but yourselves. I know this is difficult but if you speak to the right people, R.J. would be very foolish to try to punish you. Just a thought...

Thats all I was saying. I am not saying one is better than the other, or even vote for whom I believe in. I just dont want what happened last year to happen again. Theres not a big voters turn out in this county and that in itself is a shame. I wouldnt hold my breath on any of the officers to come out and voice their opinions. I hear they are all so job scared durning this time of year, that it would make you all open your eyes, and vote.

I agree with you Sweetgal.

As for the notion that spreading info on the problems with Johnson will actually work, it is utterly laughable. We all know the problems.

Like it or not, there are some (many?) people who will look at that as the opponents of the sheriff just "trying to pick on/get poor ol Ralph". I was here for the 04 election. I heard that quite a bit, and from people who should have known better. We all know how that turned out.

The other issue that Sweetgal speaks of is very real. It is simple numbers. An incumbent, even one as disliked as Johnson, has an advantage with name recognition and constituent support, and will get between 1/4 and 1/3 of the vote in a primary election. IF there are 8000 votes, thats 2000 for Ralph. Do the math - thats about 250 votes short of his total last time, and I believe it would still have won that election.

Also, all the dislike for Johnson is a double-edged sword. Yes, it gives people a reason to vote against him. But it also causes apathy. If we focus on the fact he "can't" get reelected, we are going to wake up and find a third term of this current sherrif. If you want change, work for it, not against. By having multiple candidates, some of these men are working against defeating the sheriff.

With the number of candidates and their opinions on many serious issues being so closely aligned may I offer my scenerio. Johnson will win the Republican primary. There is only one Democrat candidate. The new sheriff in November will be a Democrat. Another reason for non partisan races below the state level.

Your insight is a possible nightmare... Although very possible, think of what that will do to the Rebublican Party here. Further, the Demo Candidate is just a carbon copy of Johnson, 20 or 30 years in the FHP with no proven leadership ability... We need a LEADER, be it a Mike Adkinson or a Tom Cooper (my opinion the only two leaders in the mix). Save us all.

My Vote's Going To Count!!!!

I understand 100% of what Sweetgal and others like her are saying on here. I'm going to make my vote count and back one of the front runners, Mike Adkinson. The last two sheriff elections I voted for two other candidates other than Johnson and my vote was just wasted because he slipped right back into office because the votes were diluted with so many canidates running. Not this election....I believe Mike has the election revenue and the law enforcement management skills to put Walton County Sheriff's Office on the map in NW Florida. We have alot of experienced dedicated officers who are employed at WCSO and need an awsome leader right now. Good luck to all canidates and may God Bless You All!!!

I understand 100% of what Sweetgal and others like her are saying on here. I'm going to make my vote count and back one of the front runners, Mike Adkinson. The last two sheriff elections I voted for two other candidates other than Johnson and my vote was just wasted because he slipped right back into office because the votes were diluted with so many canidates running. Not this election....I believe Mike has the election revenue and the law enforcement management skills to put Walton County Sheriff's Office on the map in NW Florida. We have alot of experienced dedicated officers who are employed at WCSO and need an awsome leader right now. Good luck to all canidates and may God Bless You All!!!

What does "election revenue" have to do with either being a good sheriff or putting the office "on the map?" If that is your criteria for voting, I assume you are an Obama fan as well?
Also, unless the election is decided by one vote, I don't see how your voting decision will keep Johnson from "slipping back" into office.
Perhaps you would share with us whom you cast your ballot for last time?;-)

So many questions, so little time.

Yes, we do need a leader for the Walton County Sheriff’s Office. We need Rick Brown. He has excellent law enforcement management skills. Rick’s ability to lead and to manage people has been shown in the fact that many of the officers who worked for him at FWB PD have made it clear that they support him and would come to work for him if he asked them to.

I have spoken with several FWB PD officers who worked for Rick. Every single one of them supports him 100%. These are street cops, investigators, and high ranking administrators.
These men and women spoke of his leadership, his approachability and his thorough knowledge of law enforcement. They knew they could depend on him and trust in him as their supervisor. He has a dedication to law enforcement and to the men and women in law enforcement that has rarely been equaled.
I also have spoken to people who have had to call Walton County Sheriff’s Office for help and Rick Brown was the deputy they spoke to. These people were impressed with his knowledge, his ability and his sincere dedication to helping them.

I have also spoken with several Okaloosa County Deputies and personnel and they all believe that Rick Brown is extremely capable of improving Walton County Sheriff’s Office.
Rick will not stay hidden in his office, his history shows he gets his office work completed and can be out with his deputies and/or the public when he is needed. He is a true people person; my vote is for him. I suggest that you also contact Rick, listen to him, and he will listen to you. That is what I did.

Yes, we do need a leader for the Walton County Sheriff?s Office. We need Rick Brown. He has excellent law enforcement management skills. Rick?s ability to lead and to manage people has been shown in the fact that many of the officers who worked for him at FWB PD have made it clear that they support him and would come to work for him if he asked them to.

I have spoken with several FWB PD officers who worked for Rick. Every single one of them supports him 100%. These are street cops, investigators, and high ranking administrators.
These men and women spoke of his leadership, his approachability and his thorough knowledge of law enforcement. They knew they could depend on him and trust in him as their supervisor. He has a dedication to law enforcement and to the men and women in law enforcement that has rarely been equaled.
I also have spoken to people who have had to call Walton County Sheriff?s Office for help and Rick Brown was the deputy they spoke to. These people were impressed with his knowledge, his ability and his sincere dedication to helping them.

I have also spoken with several Okaloosa County Deputies and personnel and they all believe that Rick Brown is extremely capable of improving Walton County Sheriff?s Office.
Rick will not stay hidden in his office, his history shows he gets his office work completed and can be out with his deputies and/or the public when he is needed. He is a true people person; my vote is for him. I suggest that you also contact Rick, listen to him, and he will listen to you. That is what I did.

I agree that Mr. Brown seems to be a good officer and is spoken highly of by those he has worked with in the past. My question for him would be what experience he has in MANAGING a large organization such as the Sheriff's Office.While no one in the race can truly say they have been in a command position in a large agency, what distinguishes Mr. Brown from the others enough for a voter to trust him over the others,some of whom have managed small organizations ( DFSPD and SanDestin Security come to mind.)

Reply

Idlewind...how can Sandestin security come in mind with you? It has nothing to do with law enforcement work. When was the last time a security guard investigated a murder, they are totally two different types of management agencies. There are law enforcement officers....and then there are "wanna be officers" such as security guards. Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting down security guards one bit, besides I have an uncle who was a security guard for several years, but all of them want to be cops one point or another.
As for the person who commented that i was an Obama fan? Please, I'm Pro McCain all the way!!!!

Yahoodie.....

I understand you have spoken to several FWBPD officers and Okaloosa Deputies and they all support Rick Brown, That's fine...and Rick Brown is a good officer and awsome person who any officer would want beside him when **it hits the fan. But it doesn't matter what all these officers say beause how many of them live in Walton County and can even vote for Rick. The way I look at it these days, is that we have so many damn officers living outside Walton County now that they can't even vote in the county they work for!

Idlewind...how can Sandestin security come in mind with you? It has nothing to do with law enforcement work. When was the last time a security guard investigated a murder, they are totally two different types of management agencies. There are law enforcement officers....and then there are "wanna be officers" such as security guards. Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting down security guards one bit, besides I have an uncle who was a security guard for several years, but all of them want to be cops one point or another.
As for the person who commented that i was an Obama fan? Please, I'm Pro McCain all the way!!!!

My friend, at its core, the sheriff's office and a security agency are the same, they are tasked with protecting property and serving the citizens. The vast majority of the work is preventing theft and keeping the citizenry in line. How many murders do you think there are in Walton County per year? The best I can detirmine, we have had years where we had ZERO murders.
Our decision in this election is to find the person who can lead people, manage budgets and set the priorities for the agency. Neccessarily being a great investigator or deputy might not qualify. After all, my friend Larry Gilbert was a very successful sheriff in Okaloosa County for many years and his background was banking, not law enforcement.

My friend, at its core, the sheriff's office and a security agency are the same, they are tasked with protecting property and serving the citizens. The vast majority of the work is preventing theft and keeping the citizenry in line. How many murders do you think there are in Walton County per year? The best I can detirmine, we have had years where we had ZERO murders.
Our decision in this election is to find the person who can lead people, manage budgets and set the priorities for the agency. Neccessarily being a great investigator or deputy might not qualify. After all, my friend Larry Gilbert was a very successful sheriff in Okaloosa County for many years and his background was banking, not law enforcement.

You are right on point with this. We need a proven leader. Just because someone has Years and Years of experience on the street does NOT qualify them for the job. Management and professional experience is a must. I see only two candidates that fit this description.

You are right on point with this. We need a proven leader. Just because someone has Years and Years of experience on the street does NOT qualify them for the job. Management and professional experience is a must. I see only two candidates that fit this description.

I think there could be three, Mr. Cornman has impressed me as somone who could be a leader as well. Too many people seem to be making a rush to judgement in this election. I really have firmly made my mind up on only two races at this point, Mr. Davis for School Board and Mr. Jones for Commissioner 3. These are good public servants who truthfully have no serious opposition. In every other race I am still undecided and looking for more information. It goes without saying that the current Sheriff does not figure in my plans.:funn:

Yes many (not all) of those people I spoke to do not live in our county, however, it does matter what those people say; their opinion of Rick is from personal knowledge and is a point of reference for all of us to listen and learn about Rick.
You are correct about many of our deputies living outside our county, I think that is a neccessary evil but I hope the next Sheriff, Rick, will stop those Walton County vehicles from leaving our county!

I guess I'm quite ignorant about overall political strategy, specifically the mind-set of how this Thread was started. Someone please help me understand, educate me.


Is it not true that whichever Sheriff candidate collects the most support (votes) wins the primary election fair and square? Two or 20 Candidates?

I've heard the term "dilute(d)" until I'm sick of it. That political garbage aside, four years ago Sheriff Johnson collected more votes than any other Republican in the primary. Why? Does more votes equal more support? Votes of Confidence maybe?

Whether those who have used, and/or will use the "dilute(d)" term have something going or not, seems to me these same folks are basically identifying a certain percentage of voters as voting unintelligently (just stupid). For example, hear John Doe at the polls and about to vote: Let?s see (John Doe thinks to himself), I think I will vote for?uh, uh, the incumbent of course; especially since all the talk about him doing such a horrible job; all those road signs, newspaper advertisements, fancy websites, mailings, promises, etc., etc., none of those other candidates can improve anything? yeap, I?ll vote for the incumbent.

Well, maybe so? Regardless, I say most votes equal most support, or visa versa, strategy or not.

So to all Sheriff Candidates: Don't give up, battle it out. Whoever of you gets the most votes, wins.

Is this a subject? Or does anyone wish to respond to my call for assistance as written above?

I guess I'm quite ignorant about overall political strategy, specifically the mind-set of how this Thread was started. Someone please help me understand, educate me.


Is it not true that whichever Sheriff candidate collects the most support (votes) wins the primary election fair and square? Two or 20 Candidates?

I've heard the term "dilute(d)" until I'm sick of it. That political garbage aside, four years ago Sheriff Johnson collected more votes than any other Republican in the primary. Why? Does more votes equal more support? Votes of Confidence maybe?

Whether those who have used, and/or will use the "dilute(d)" term have something going or not, seems to me these same folks are basically identifying a certain percentage of voters as voting unintelligently (just stupid). For example, hear John Doe at the polls and about to vote: Let?s see (John Doe thinks to himself), I think I will vote for?uh, uh, the incumbent of course; especially since all the talk about him doing such a horrible job; all those road signs, newspaper advertisements, fancy websites, mailings, promises, etc., etc., none of those other candidates can improve anything? yeap, I?ll vote for the incumbent.

Well, maybe so? Regardless, I say most votes equal most support, or visa versa, strategy or not.

So to all Sheriff Candidates: Don't give up, battle it out. Whoever of you gets the most votes, wins.

I cannot engage in a discussion regarding the sheriff race, but I can give you an answer about "dilution." It happened in 2004, despite some questionable actions during RJ's first term that were loudly talked about in the media, just as much as anything since has been. Indeed, many, MANY more votes were cast against RJ than were cast for him, but the total for each candidate was less than the total an incumbent gets by name recognition alone. That is how RJ got a second term.

However, if you were here then, you already know that.

Idlewind;
As a supervisor with the FWBPD, I took advantage of the opportunities given to me to contribute to the preparation and application of the budget, to the creation, and administration of policies and procedures and various other aspects of the agency.

It was my good fortune to be mentored by my commanding officer for a future promotion to the rank of Captain (division commander).
I had significant direct experience in conflict resolution, addressing citizen complaints, internal investigation of the conduct of subordinate officers, resource deployment, and many other areas of agency and personnel management.
As a senior supervisor, many times I was, in a sense the commanding officer of the agency in the absence of the division commander and the Chief of Police.
However, I elected to take advantage of the opportunity through retirement and employment with the Walton County Sheriff’s Office to one day be able to use the vast supervisory and managerial skills I developed by leading this office at the first opportunity.

Fitness

Idlewind;
As a supervisor with the FWBPD, I took advantage of the opportunities given to me to contribute to the preparation and application of the budget, to the creation, and administration of policies and procedures and various other aspects of the agency.

It was my good fortune to be mentored by my commanding officer for a future promotion to the rank of Captain (division commander).
I had significant direct experience in conflict resolution, addressing citizen complaints, internal investigation of the conduct of subordinate officers, resource deployment, and many other areas of agency and personnel management.
As a senior supervisor, many times I was, in a sense the commanding officer of the agency in the absence of the division commander and the Chief of Police.
However, I elected to take advantage of the opportunity through retirement and employment with the Walton County Sheriff?s Office to one day be able to use the vast supervisory and managerial skills I developed by leading this office at the first opportunity.

How do you feel about the implementation of a physical fitness program for ALL WCSO Sworn Officers? I'm not refering to lifting pens and pencils...