St. Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick crushed competitor Jim Priester in the GOP primary Tuesday, all but ensuring another four-year term.
Brushing off a wave of negative attack ads, Hardwick received 29,772 votes while Priester drew only 11,154 — winning by a margin of 73% to 27%.
Hardwick, the former St. Augustine Beach Chief of Police, touted his office’s ability to meet the needs of his rapidly expanding county in recent weeks.
He has lobbied for a $128 million budget to add deputies and additional resources in order to scale up with the community.
The SJSO currently has 1,000 staffers, a figure Hardwick has pledged to bolster in the coming months.
