Just as he did in the Thurston County primary election on Aug. 4, incumbent Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders finds himself leading big over challenger Kevin Burton-Crow on election night.
Preliminary results from the Tuesday, Nov. 3, Thurston County general election show the incumbent, Sanders, an Independent, leads with 68.66 percent, while the challenger, Burton-Crow, a Democrat, trails with 31.04 percent of total votes.
In total, Sanders received 44,164 votes from his constituents countywide, while Burton-Crow tallied 19,967 votes throughout Thurston County.
These results are preliminary and will be updated in the coming days and weeks ahead before the election is certified.
“The voters got it right. I’m excited to keep pushing Thurston County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO) forward and into the future,” Sanders told the Nisqually Valley News on Tuesday, Nov. 3. “That margin represents a vote of confidence in the direction of the sheriff’s office, in our staff, in our employees and in our volunteers. I also think it’s a vote of confidence in the partnership between the sheriff’s office and virtually every partner out there.”
The sheriff added that whether it's been through collaboration with local firefighters, elected officials or community members, his campaign has been a “true team effort” from everyone involved in it.
In his next term, Sanders said he wants to hone-in on the community-based aspects of being a sheriff, such as launching a community advisory board.
During his first term, the sheriff had heavily pushed the concept of a community advisory board, but wasn’t able to get it launched. He claimed the board should be formed sometime in the first quarter of 2027, at the latest.
“We want a community advisory board,” Sanders said. “We want to get more programs opened up for the community because now we actually have a house we’re actually proud of — our sheriff’s office headquarters building, where we can actually host events. We can do things like firearms safety classes for people who are curious about what gun ownership looks like. We could do some coloring competitions with kids. We want to find new and unique ways to build partnerships with the community.
“The big piece is we’ve got to find a solution to our jail overcrowding issue,” he continued. “That’s a big, big issue that’s facing the county.”
Sanders would also like to see some internal improvements take place within TCSO, as a lot of his work during term one was external.
“We have lots to clean up internally. Kevin wasn’t wrong about that,” Sanders said. “We do have areas where we do have to improve. I just argue with the idea that it was too late. We have more time. Four more years, actually.”
