Colleagues turned enemies Ric Bradshaw and Michael Gauger take on the Palm Beach County Sheriff

Palm Beach County voters will decide whether to keep their longtime Sheriff, Democrat Ric Bradshawor replace him with a Republican Michael Gaugerwho was previously Bradshaw’s second-in-command.

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

Bradshaw served five terms as sheriff. He was first elected to the post in 2004 and is the county’s longest-serving sheriff ever. He oversees six departments, has 4,300 employees and approximately 1,500 volunteers.

Bradshaw previously worked for the West Palm Beach Police Department, starting as a highway patrol officer and working his way up to police chief in 1996.

He served on the Board of Directors of the FBI’s Joint Task Force and is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps.

In 2014, Bradshaw launched the Department’s Behavioral Division’s Targeted Violence Unit, which assesses and manages cases of potential terrorism or targeted violence.

He organized task forces to “take down gangs, eliminate illegal pill mills, track down cyber predators and lock up human traffickers” and introduced the use of body cameras to the agency.

Bradshaw also invested $13 million in confiscated money from criminals to support local community programs for children, seniors and underserved communities.

He has been endorsed by Maj. Alex Vrijmanwhom he defeated in the Democratic Primary, and the retired police captain. Lauro Diazwho lost to Gauger in the Republican primaries.

Democratic Boynton Beach Senator. Lori Berman has also endorsed Bradshaw, as have Democratic Reps. Kelly Skidmore from Boca Raton and David Silvers from the shores of Lake Clarke.

Gauger challenges Bradshaw after serving 16 years as chief deputy of the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office (PBSO).

Like Bradshaw, he served in various law enforcement positions during his decades-long career before retiring in 2021, when he received the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Legion of Merit Award.

Gauger has pledged to reform the sheriff’s budget by cutting “lavish spending” on office space and putting an end to “million-dollar bonuses” and “$100,000 luxury vehicles for executives.”

He promised to reinstate a host of agencies, including the Graffiti Unit, the Aggressive Driving Unit and the Animal Cruelty Prevention Unit. He also advocated bringing back Eagle Academy, a boot camp program for at-risk youth, and Drug Farm, a therapeutic recovery program for nonviolent, drug-addicted offenders.

Gauger blamed Bradshaw for eliminating the units despite the sheriff’s office budget of almost $1 billion. He then criticized his former boss for buying four new helicopters and two fixed-wing aircraft.

Gauger was endorsed by the Palm Beach County Fraternal Order of Police — a notable nod, his campaign said, given the rarity of a sitting sheriff who doesn’t have the support of his deputies.

He has also received messages of support from the Palm Beach Post And South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Bradshaw has dominated Gauger financially. The Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections website shows he has raised nearly $871,000 through mid-October, compared to Gauger’s $234,000.

It is striking that both candidates received money from convicted criminals. Bradshaw accepted a donation of Lewis Stahlwho was sentenced to 30 months in prison for evading federal income taxes. Gauger initially received a donation from Lewis Kasmana former associate of the New York mobster John GottiBut the money refunded.

Bradshaw spent three times more than Gauger, totaling about $600,000.

Bradshaw and Gauger were once colleagues and engaged in political hullabaloo in the run-up to the general election. Gauger blamed Bradshaw for lax security after the second murder attempt by Donald Trump near the former president’s Mar-a-Lago resort. Bradshaw responded that the criticism was proof that Gauger has no idea of ​​the sheriff’s responsibilities.

During the Primary for Sheriff, a political committee that has donated money to Bradshaw over the past twenty years accused Gauger of lying about his service in the US Army during the Vietnam War. Gauger called it a “smear.”

The general election is on November 5.

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Michael Costeines reporting.

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