On November 4, five of the nine Bucks County Row offices will be up for election or re-election to their positions.
In Bucks County, row officers are elected in an “at large” voting system of four-year terms and some of the office election terms are staggered by two year intervals. Every eligible and registered voter across Bucks County will cast a vote for each office – regardless of the municipal location in which candidates reside.
Candidates for Bucks County Row Office must be at least 18 years of age, and a Bucks County resident for at least one year prior to the election. Row officers cannot also be federal employees, a member of Congress, a member of the Board of Health, a member of a municipal legislative body, such as a borough council member, township supervisor or a school board director.
What’s a Sheriff?
According to the National Sheriffs’ Association, there are about 3,081 sheriffs servicing in counties throughout the nation. Three U.S. states: Alaska, Connecticut – which replaced sheriff’s offices with the National Marshal System or U.S. Marshals Service and Hawaii, where deputy sheriffs serve in their Division of Public Safety do not have county sheriffs.
A sheriff is usually – but not always – the highest elected law enforcement authority in a county. The Bucks County Sheriff is elected every four years and is a County Row Officer position as mandated by Pennsylvania law.
“According to Anglo-Saxon custom, if someone broke the law it was not just a crime against the victim, but a crime against the whole community,” the Pennsylvania Sheriffs’ Association website states. The practice dates to England’s Alfred the Great (King of Wessex; 849-899 CE).
These are among the duties and responsibilities of a county sheriff’s:
· Court order enforcement, such as serving warrants and legal documents like protection from abuse orders, and others.
· Transporting prisoners and providing courthouse security.
· Assisting with “general” county-wide law enforcement.
· Providing specialized support, such as K9 Units for search and rescue operations and bomb threat and detection operations.
