San Mateo County shows why we shouldn’t be electing sheriffs

San Mateo County shows why we shouldn’t be electing sheriffs

By appointing Kenneth Binder as San Mateo’s new sheriff, the county’s board of supervisors bypassed the will of the voters. We should adapt that as the national standard. A sheriff wields enormous power and position on a local level, yet we elect them in the same political fashion as we do city councilmembers and school boards. But today’s sheriffs oversee multimillion-dollar agencies, manage jails and set enforcement priorities that shape entir…

Public participation shapes outcome as Ken Binder becomes leader of San Mateo County’s largest law enforcement agency

After a public process that lasted for weeks and got plenty of attention and engagement from the community, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors has chosen Ken Binder to be the next sheriff