Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Staff writer
Wesley Waller is poised to be the next Curry County Sheriff after walking away from Tuesday’s primary election with more than 70 percent of the Republican votes.
No Democrats sought the position and thus will none will be placed on the ballot for the November general election.
Sam Elliston and Rolf Jordi were the other two Republican candidates.
Elliston received 13 percent with 250 votes while Jordi received 14.5 percent with 276 votes. Waller received 1,366 votes.
Waller has been Curry County undersheriff for more than seven years under Sheriff Matt Murray, who is term-limited.
“I feel like for the last seven years, I have been very visible and very active and very accessible to the public and I like to think that helped me in this race,” Waller said Tuesday night. “I really appreciate the support that I received from my wife (Launa) and my children, who have been living this with me every day.”
Jordi said running in the election was a wonderful experience and he got to meet a lot of people.
“I’ve enjoyed getting to go out and meet more people in the county and I encourage others to do the same. You meet some great people,” Jordi said, adding that more people should get involved with politics as well. “I respect the voters and they have spoken. That’s how it’s supposed to be. I congratulate Mr. Waller.”
Elliston was not immediately available for comment.
Waller said as sheriff, he would like to make subtle changes, such as expanding upon certain programs already in place.
“We’re always looking for areas that we can improve,” Waller said. “I would like to, as much as the schools will allow us to, become more involved with the schools and with security and instruction with the staff as far as the security of the facility and the students and if there is a problem at the school, how they should react.
“I want to have as much coordination between law enforcement and school personnel so that we can pre-plan and have established (a system) prior to any event taking place. With some of the instances we’ve seen across the nation, I would like to be more prepared for that here.”
