Hollenbeck wins Sheriff race; Republicans sweep other top county posts

Bill Hollenbeck will be the next Sebastian County Sheriff.

Hollenbeck (D) captured more than 57% of the vote in the race against Tommy Young (R).

The first ever professional survey of the race for Sheriff, The City Wire Election 2010 Poll showed Hollenbeck (D) with a 48% to 41.5% lead over Republican Tommy Young among Fort Smith voters. The survey of 600 likely voters conducted Oct. 19 in Fort Smith also showed that 10.5% remain undecided.

The race opened up when Sheriff Frank Atkinson, 63, announced March 8 he would not seek a seventh, two-year term.

Young, now serving as chief deputy of the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Department, was not surprised that Hollenbeck has a lead among Fort Smith voters. Young said in late October he was confident the lead would not hold up when all Sebastian County votes are tallied on Nov. 2.

The race for sheriff centered on a rash of prisoner escapes from the Sebastian County Jail in the past few years. Hollenbeck, who was a captain the the department until taking a leave of absence in September 2009, said he had new ideas to improve the situation. Young, as chief deputy, said he had the most experience to implement his changes if elected.

Hollenbeck was the only Democratic candidate to survive the top county races.

In the Sebastian County Clerk race, Sharon Brooks (R) won over Angie Hatiwg (D) with almost 64% of the vote. The seat opened after Sebastian County Clerk Doris Tate made an unsuccessful bid for Arkansas Secretary of State. Tate had held the county position for almost 20 years.

In the Sebastian County Treasurer/Collector race, incumbent Judith Miller (R) won over Debbie Johnson (D) with more than 71% of the vote.

In the Sebastian County Circuit Clerk race, Ken Blevins (R) won over Cindy Gilmer (D) with 55.7% of the vote.