Letter: Chojnacki’s character is best for sheriff’s role
To the Editor-
I am writing to ask you to vote for Chojnacki for Portage County Sheriff on August 9.
Once I learned that Mr. Chojnacki had thrown his hat in the ring, I wondered why a current deputy would want to run against the incumbent sheriff. I knew there had to be a few reasons and decided to do some digging on my own. I truly wanted to figure out which candidate would be best for our county and department.
I read the Jensen Community Spirit’s July issue which highlighted a question-and-answer section for the candidates and concluded that we need a positive change. I had the opportunity to talk with current and retired employees of the sheriff’s department about their concerns. In all other publications and during the debate Mr. Chojnacki has emphasized the needs of the department and our county. He will put the needs of the county and department ahead of himself.
There appears to be a lack of leadership, integrity, transparency, and honesty. We have all heard these words before elsewhere, haven’t we? But there is truly a lack of all of these important aspects in our law enforcement sheriff and maybe more. The department appears to have lost good employees because of the lack of leadership skills.
Currently, the department has some great individuals that would become great leaders if they were allowed to lead as their job descriptions state. We don’t want to lose any more good employees. They are too hard to come by in law enforcement these days.
Florian has a website and Facebook page. The website and Facebook postings have a link to “Endorsements.” Four or more of the individuals that endorse Florian were supervisors for both the current sheriff and Mr. Chojnacki. These individuals are not the type to hold grudges and definitely have first-hand experience with the caliber of each of these candidates.
There are other retired sheriff’s department individuals that were gone when Mr. Chojnacki was hired that are backing the incumbent. They have no basis for comparison.
I strongly believe that a sheriff should have law enforcement experience. I also believe that the sheriff’s race should not be a popularity contest, but based on voting in the best candidate with experience, someone with high integrity, good leadership skills, an understanding of the importance of transparency, a vision for the department, plus a leader that leads by working closely with other leaders in positions of authority within and outside the department. Someone who is also calm and a good listener and has the ability to delegate authority to the management staff and is an honest individual.
Mr. Chojnacki measures up to all of these standards.
I truly feel in my heart that if the majority of the voters knew the truth they will vote Chojnacki for Sheriff.
I urge you to join us and vote on August 9 for Florian Chojnacki as the next sheriff of Portage County.
Sandi Keener
Amherst