Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott sweeps primary race
Sheriff Leon Lott retained his position as the county’s top lawman.
Lott won Richland County’s Democratic primary for sheriff. With the win, Lott secured his position as Richland County Sheriff as he has no Republican opponent.
With all precincts reporting, Lott won with 71.03% or 36,558 votes.
Lott said the vote showed the trust that the Richland County community has in the department he runs.
“I think (voters) showed last night that we are different than a lot of the other country that doesn’t respect their law enforcement,” Lott said. “Last night was a report card for how we work with our community. And we got an A plus. It validated a lot of what we’ve done.”
Lott faced two former Richland County deputies in the Democratic primary. Jason Roberts earned 21.38% of the vote, and A.V. Strong earned 7.59% of the vote.
Roberts campaigned on his “Mayberry Philosophy,” which, in essence, would create a force of police involved in the communities where they live and patrol and make new ways for young people and others to engage with deputies. He also wanted to explore consolidating the Columbia Police Department with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
Strong touted his former military and police record as well as leading a non-profit that helped keep young people away from drugs and gangs.
Lott campaigned as the candidate with the most experience and an in depth knowledge of the issues facing Richland County.
But neither could overcome Lott’s campaign as a candidate with experience and in-depth knowledge of the issues facing the county. Lott first ran and won the position of Richland County sheriff in 1996.
This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 10:14 PM.