The stage is set for York County sheriff race

YORK COUNTY, S .C. — The second round of filing is now closed for the York County sheriff’s race, and what was once an uncontested race now has a larger field of Republican candidates.

Five people will face off in the Republican Party primary, including Beth Tolson, the wife of current York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson.

Channel 9′s Tina Terry has been covering the developments since Kevin dropped out of the race and his wife filed on the last day of eligibility. That controversial move prompted the local party to reopen the filing period, and four more people entered the running.

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Terry spoke with Tolson and two of the candidates, Chris Blevins and Heath Clevenger, last week. As of Wednesday’s filing deadline, two more people joined the race, and they actually worked together at the Rock Hill Police Department.

Michael Belk is the deputy chief with the Rock Hill PD, and he says the qualities that make him the best candidate are his “experience, proven leadership, and continued commitment to the profession.”

Belk says he worked his way through the ranks at the police department in the last 30 years, and now he commands five divisions.

“I feel going into the sheriff’s office will be a lot better transition for me than other candidates,” Belk told Terry.

If elected, Belk said he would prioritize turning his ear to the community.

“Getting to know everyone, learning all about communities across York County. I’m big into community engagement, hearing what communities want to share with us,” Belk said.

His former co-worker, Tony Breeden, is going to battle him for the job.

Breeden grew up in Charlotte and started working for the Rock Hill Police Department in 1995.

“There’s some people that don’t ever know what they want to do, and then there’s some people that know that’s the only thing they’re supposed to do,” Breeden told Terry.

He says he’s loved the work. He advanced from patrol to street crimes and ended his career as a lieutenant before retiring two years ago.

A priority for Breeden is to improve how the community sees law enforcement.

“I just believe that we constantly need to improve our relationship with all parts of the county, not just where it’s easy, but where it’s difficult,” Breeden told Terry.

He says he wants voters to pay close attention to this crowded race, but he trusts things will work out as they should.

“I’ve told everybody if I’m supposed to be there nothing will stop it,” Breeden said.

The candidates will face off in a primary election on June 11. If no candidate gets a majority of the votes, a runoff will take place on June 25. There’s no Democratic candidate for the race, so the Republican nominee will likely win November’s general election.

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