Democrat Palm Beach Sheriff Ric Bradshaw He won a sixth consecutive term as president on Tuesday, defeating his Republican counterpart turned foe Michael Meter in a tight race for the county’s top cop job.

With early and mail-in votes counted and 491 of 798 precincts reporting, Bradshaw received 58% of the vote, leaving his longtime second-in-command to continue his job overseeing an Office of six departments, 4,300 employees and nearly 1,500 volunteers.

Both men are 76 years old and have more than 50 years of law enforcement experience.

Bradshaw was first elected Sheriff in 2004 and held the position longer than anyone else. It is largely staffed by the agency’s Targeted Violence Unit, which investigates and manages cases of potential terrorism and targeted violence and “dismantles gangs, dismantle illegal pill mills, hunt down cyberstalkers, and incarcerate human traffickers.”

It also introduced the use of body cameras and invested $13 million in seized funds to support local community programs.

Gauger challenged Bradshaw after serving as Deputy Chief for 16 years. He kept his promise to reform the Sheriff’s budget by cutting “lavish spending” on office space and ending “million-dollar bonuses” and “$100,000 luxury vehicles for executives.”

He also promised to restore numerous departments of the Sheriff’s Office, including the Graffiti Unit, Aggressive Driving Unit and Animal Cruelty Prevention Unit, and to resurrect the agency’s Eagle Academy and Medicine Farm, which provide boot camps and rescue services to at-risk youth, respectively. non-violent drug offenders.

Gauger accused Bradshaw of eliminating the units despite the Sheriff’s warning. budget of approximately 1 billion dollars and the purchase of four new helicopters and two fixed-wing aircraft.

Bradshaw got the nod this cycle from Gauger’s Primary opponent, retired police Capt. Lauro Díazand his primary opponent, Democratic Riviera Beach Police Maj. Alex Freeman.

Other Democrats supporting Bradshaw included Boynton Beach Sen. Lori Berman and Representatives. Kelly Skidmore Boca Raton and David Silvers Shores of Lake Clarke.

Gauger won Approval from the Palm Beach County Fraternal Order of Police — a remarkable nod, his campaign said, considering it’s rare for a sitting Sheriff to fail to gain the support of his deputies.

Palm Beach Post And South Florida Sun-Sentinel also supported him.

Bradshaw dominated financially, raising $1.78 million. campaign account and state-level political committee, Ric Bradshaw’s FriendsIncluding funds transferred from previous campaigns, he had more than $1 million left with less than a week until Election Day.

Gauger reported raising close to $246,000 through campaign accountBy November, he had about $20,000 left.

Both candidates received money from convicted criminals. Bradshaw accepted the donation Lewis Stahlwho was sentenced to 30 months in prison To avoid federal income taxes. Gauger initially received a donation Lewis KasmanA former associate of a New York mobster John GottiHowever returned the money.

The candidates engaged in some political turmoil. Gauger blamed Bradshaw for inadequate security measures. second assassination attempt related to Donald Trump near the former President’s Mar-a-Lago resort. Bradshaw responded by saying the criticism was evidence that Gauger was “ignorant” of the Sheriff’s responsibilities.

A political committee that has donated to Bradshaw for the past two decades during the primary He accused Gauger of lying about his service In the US Army during the Vietnam War.

Gauger called this a “stain.”

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Jesse Scheckner And Michael Costeines contributed to this report.

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