OLATHE, Kan. — In the Johnson County Republican primary for sheriff, Sheriff Calvin Hayden was defeated by former undersheriff Doug Bedford.
Hayden was behind all night in the race.
Bedford is a former U.S. Navy SEAL who served as Hayden’s undersheriff from 2017 to 2021.
Hayden has become a controversial figure over the last two years, investigating alleged election irregularities without filing any criminal charges.
Then, in the summer of 2022, he participated in a conference for a group promoting a theory that sheriffs have virtually unchecked power in their counties, though he says he is not a member.
Last month, Hayden said he suspended the investigation, blaming the county’s destruction in February of ballots from 2019, 2020, and 2021, which is at least 17 months late but in line with state law.
Hayden had campaigned on a variety of right-wing issues, including fears about crime and immigration, COVID mandates and violent protests. But it was his insistence — despite lack of prosecutable evidence — that something seemed amiss in recent county election results that captured national attention.
According to unofficial final results Tuesday, Bedford received 23,572 of the 41,944 votes cast or about 56%, while Hayden’s total was 18,372 or about 43%.
Bedford said he was not particularly surprised with the outcome given the responses he’s had from people whose doors he knocked on.
“The citizens of Johnson County spoke today and they’re tired of having politics in the office and they want professionalism instead,” Bedford said.
Bedford faces Democratic candidate Byron Roberson, the police chief of Prairie Village, in the Nov. 5 general election.
