Is The Sheriff’s Badge Becoming A Campaign Prop

A sheriff retires early, senior leaders follow him out the door, and an interim appointment clock starts ticking fast. That combination can be totally routine or it can reshape an election before voters ever get their say, and that’s the tension we dig into as we track the developing Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office story.

We walk through the timeline behind Sheriff John Gesey’s announced retirement and the wave of additional departures, along with the official reasons being cited: budget pressure, pension incentives, and a stated handoff to the “next generation” of leadership. Then we zoom out to what’s making residents uneasy, the perception that partisan politics may be taking priority over public safety and continuity in a department already facing recruitment and retention challenges.

Because the sheriff is a partisan office in Washington state, the interim sheriff appointment process runs through party nominees and county commissioner approval. We explain how that pipeline can create an incumbency advantage heading into the November election, where Democrat Brandon Myers faces Republican Rick Cuss. We also discuss the acting sheriff role, the optics of strategic promotions, and why these decisions can affect real outcomes like response times, jail operations, and investigative capacity across Kitsap County and neighboring jurisdictions.

If you care about local elections, law enforcement leadership, and how government decisions ripple into day-to-day safety, this is worth your time. Subscribe for ongoing coverage, share the episode with a neighbor, and leave a review with your take on the big question: smart succession plan or suspicious power play?

Transcript

Cold Open And Setup

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And we're laughing. All right. We're just we're experimenting here. Welcome to another episode of KMJC News. And

The Retirement Bombshell

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today we have a little interesting story coming out of the Sheriff's Department in Kitsap County. Today we're diving into a developing situation in the Kitzep County Sheriff's Office that has raised some serious questions about whether partisan politics is being placed ahead of public safety. It's a story of sudden retirement, strategic promotions, and well-worn Democratic playbook that looks a lot like installing an incumbent just months before an election. So let's walk through what happened. Kitsup County Sheriff John Gesey, a Democrat, recently announced his retirement effective June 26, 2026. That's this Friday. Much earlier than the end of his term. He was joined by four other top leaders, under Sheriff Roos, Roos, Russ, Clitheroe, Chief of Detectives and Support Services, Lisa Gundrum, Chief of Patrol, Chad Brinkenfield, and finance manager Wendy Duttenhofer. They cited budget pressures and pension incentives tied to retiring by the end of June. In his statement, Gesey said he was stepping aside to take advantage of Cola adjustments in his retirement and let the next generation of leaders guide the agency through budget decisions. Here's the

The 2022 Playbook Returns

SPEAKER_00 1:22

context that has many residents raising eyebrows. Back in 2022, Geecey himself benefited from a similar early vacancy when the previous Democratic Sheriff stepped down, allowing Geecy to run as an incumbent, a major advantage in local elections. Now, four years later, it appears history is repeating itself to the benefit of the Democratic nominee for sheriff. This November

Election Stakes And Appointment Rules

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election features two candidates: Democrat Brandon Myers, a longtime Kittsett County Office Sheriff's Office Deputy, and Republican Rick Cuss, a deputy with the King County Sheriff's Office. Following the wave of retirements, Myers was promoted to a high-ranking position. Patrol chief, filling one of the vacancies. Under Washington state law, it's a partisan office. The Democrat Central Committee gets to submit up to three names to the county commissioners for the interim sheriff role. The board, made up of two Democrats and one Republican, has already named Penny Sapp, another Democrat and chief of corrections, as acting sheriff starting June 29th to maintain continuity. But the real appointment for the remainder of the term is expected to come quickly from the Democrat nominees, with Myers widely seen as the front runners. Tom Seitler, chair of the Kitsap County Democrats, didn't hide the strategy. He told the Kitsap son, We've done this before, referencing past appointments, and noted the party knows the process well. They just need volunteers to fill out the list of three. The two Democratic commissioners are expected to follow the party's lead, making the outcome predictable. The temporary role for Penny Sapp looks like a thin veil of impartiality before installing Myers as the interim sheriff, giving him the powerful incumbent vantage heading into November.

Staffing Strain And Internal Concerns

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Internal sources within the sheriff's office have also raised concerns. With KMJC, they say Brandon Myers had previously been passed over for promotion to a similar high-level role. Now, all of a sudden, a sudden exodus, and he's fast tracked in. This is all happening at a time when the Sheriff's Office is already critically short-staffed. Reports highlight ongoing recruitment and retention challenges, with Washington ranking near the bottom in officers per capita. Budget cuts are real, yet top leadership is walking out early, reportedly for personal financial gain and to clear the path politically. Critics argue this guts institutional knowledge and operational leadership exactly when the department needs it most. Republican candidate Rick Cuss has been vocal, saying voters deserve to decide at the ballot box with one candidate without one candidate being handed the incumbent title through backroom processes. He and others question the politics. The politics is whether politics is trumping the experience needed to keep our community safe. Folks, this feels like political maneuvering. A Democrat sheriff and his team create vacancies at a convenient time, promote their party's candidate, hand off to a party loyalist temporarily, and then let the Democrat machine fill the seat, all while the public is told it's about the next generation and budgets.

Public Safety Versus Party Power

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Public safety shouldn't be a partisan chess game. Kitsap County residents and those in neighboring counties who rely on cross-jurisdictional response deserve a sheriff's office focusing on hiring, training, and protecting, not engineering election advantages. The interim appointment process is moving fast, the Democrat Party is pulling together nominees, and the commissioners plan to act soon after. This is exactly why KMJC News keeps a close watch on local government. These decisions affect response times, jail operations, investigations, and overall safety for our growing communities. What do you think? Is it a smart succession plan or suspicious power play? Reach out to us, email, social media, or our tip line. We want to hear from deputies, residents, and anyone with insight as to how this is impacting morale and operations inside the department.

Your Turn And What’s Next

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This is Taylor John Atakis with KMJC. We'll continue to follow the story closely as the interim appointment unfolds and the election heats up. Stay safe, stay informed, stay engaged. Local government matters, especially when it comes to those who wear the badge.