Voters will head to the polls later this year for a variety of state and municipal elections. Some will be deciding on who they want as their county’s top law enforcement officer.
A listener recently asked why sheriffs in North Carolina are elected, while police chiefs are hired.
For this week’s Carolina Curious, reporter DJ Simmons spoke with University of North Carolina at Greensboro professor Hunter Bacot to learn more.
According to Bacot, the reason stems from the unique position sheriffs hold in North Carolina as “constitutional officers.” He says they were given that title because the state’s forefathers feared a central executive that held too much power.
“So what they did is they created the sheriff's office at the local level to have power such that no one else could usurp that power, and by putting it in the constitution, it creates a powerful local government official that does not really have to answer to anyone else in the state except the local folks who vote,” Bacot says.
He says sheriffs oversee the courts and the county jail, while a police chief is a more traditional law enforcement officer. But their personal dynamics with residents often differ because one is elected.
Bacot says sheriffs are usually more highly visible and personable because they need to maintain relationships with the community. It’s why you’re more likely to see them provide wellness checks, appear at business openings, or, in some counties, even have their own podcasts.
“You see a lot more of that type of unofficial service provided by the sheriff because, again, it's constituency service," he says. "You're providing a service to the people who vote for you, whereas a police chief does not have to worry about that.”
Bacot says it’s in part what the state’s founders wanted with a position that’s more responsive to the people. But the chances of seeing a change where a police chief is elected or a sheriff is hired are pretty slim.
“It’d be difficult because you have to amend the constitution, and that's a big lift," Bacot says. "And so I very seriously doubt that local governments are going to give up that power to be able to hire and fire a police chief as they see fit.”