After a campaign mired in controversy, Sherrif Bruce Zuchowski (R) will defeat Jon Barber (D) in the race for Portage County Sheriff.

Zuchowski won with 40,029 votes compared with Barber’s 38,831 votes.

Zuchowski made national headlines for a now-deleted Facebook post encouraging people to write down the addresses with signs supporting Vice President Kamala Harris. In the same post, Zuchowski also referred to immigrants as “locusts.”

The sheriff’s comments led the Portage County Board of Elections to remove the Portage County Sheriff’s Office from election security. The U.S. Department of Justice also sent observers to the county to ensure civil rights were not violated after concerns of voter intimidation.

Zuchowski has repeatedly refused to speak to The Kent Stater.

Alton Northup is news director. Contact him at [email protected].