With less than two weeks to spare before county general elections, Lloyd Clendenen is gearing up for his first general election.
Mr. Clendenen is the Democratic challenger to incumbent Sheriff Jim Hammond, who has held the office for two years after winning a special election following the arrest of former sheriff Billy Long, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to 27 charges involving extortion, money laundering, drugs and guns.
A 24-year employee of La-Z-Boy, Mr. Clendenen said he was motivated to run for the sheriff's position out of concerns with an increase in both gang activity and drugs in the unincorporated areas of the county.
He has no law enforcement training or experience, which are not required to run for sheriff. If elected, he said he would take K-9 dogs through all Hamilton County schools to search for drugs and other contraband.
"I want to stop the drugs," he said. "I feel like there's not enough emphasis or education while they're young to stop this while they're young."
In a meeting Monday with the Times Free Press editorial board, Sheriff Hammond pointed to his decades of law enforcement experience and improvements made in the department over the last two years.
He noted that he's established a career development division for officers to guide them through law enforcement training and promotions, begun work on accreditation for both the department and the jail and has begun more joint training and operations with other local police,.
"I could not have asked for a better team," he said. "I think I have moved some things around where people can use their gifts and strengths a little more."
Growing the neighborhood watch programs from 20 to nearly 100 in the last two years has helped with community outreach, he said. To prepare for the anticipated population growth, he wants to move the sheriff's office to the west annex on Dayton Boulevard and continue working on infrastructure projects such as a new jail within five years and a regional police training center, he said.
Incumbent sheriffs are historically difficult to unseat, said University of Tennessee at Chattanooga political science professor Richard Wilson.
"Most of these sheriffs stay quite a while, people don't want to try somebody new," the professor said.
Once elected, a sheriff gains name recognition, which makes fundraising easier and helps advertising for even better name recognition - an important factor in local elections, he said.
The most recent campaign finance disclosure forms show that Mr. Clendenen has spent $1,389 since April and has a remaining balance of $365. Sheriff Hammond's report shows $15,326 in spending since April and a remaining $31,806 balance.
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