Election 2020: Countryman declared unofficial winner of Muscogee County Sheriff primary

Greg Countryman, the current Muscogee County marshal, will face off against Republican Mark LaJoye in the November general election for the office of Muscogee County Sheriff.

When the ballots were all finally counted at 4:06 p.m. Wednesday, Countryman led with 13,797 votes, or 54% of the vote, in Tuesday’s Democratic primary election.

All results are unofficial until they are certified by the five-member county elections board.

One-term incumbent Donna Tompkins conceded the race as she secured 7,760 votes, or 30%, and challenger Pam Brown had 3,945 votes, or 16%.

Countryman said Wednesday he will run a “vigorous, clean race” against LaJoye.

“We’re not going to underestimate anyone,” he said. “We’re going to keep it professional and we’re going to rely on our voters to come back to the polls and for those that didn’t vote for us we want to win those votes over so we can actually get a victory in November also.”

If elected in November, Countryman would become the first black sheriff in the history of Columbus.

“It is a huge feat for our whole community because since 1827, almost 200 years, we have not had an African-American occupy the office,” he said. “This is a historical moment but I would also like to say that I am qualified to be sheriff and I happen to be African-American.”

The sheriff is in charge of a $29.5 million budget, a staff of 440 and a county jail population that ranges from 900 to 1,200 inmates.

Countryman has 29 years of experience in law enforcement, having worked for the Columbus Housing Authority police and for the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office before he became marshal Jan. 5, 2005. He has since never lost a re-election.

When Countryman announced he would be running for the sheriff’s office, Columbus Council voted to ask state legislature to consolidate the marshal’s office with the sheriff’s office, since Countryman’s exit would leave no incumbent. Gov. Brian Kemp signed the legislature into law in February.

Tompkins has more than 30 years of experience with the sheriff’s office, having started as a civilian before rising through the ranks to become the captain over administration, before she retired to run for sheriff. She is currently serving her first term.

Earlier in the day, Tompkins conceded to Countryman in a Facebook post, calling him the sheriff.

“I deeply appreciate all of those that supported me in this campaign with your vote, your prayers and your financial support,” she wrote. “My prayers are for the healing of this community and the dedicated employees of the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office.”

Brown has 24 years of law enforcement experience, having served with the Georgia Department of Corrections, with the security staff at St. Francis Hospital and with the sheriff’s office.

LaJoye joined the Army at age 18, serving 40 years in the infantry, airborne and special operations forces. A combat veteran who served with National Guard special forces, he worked 13 years for the Columbus Police Department.

LaJoye said Tuesday that this election met his expectations.

“It just shows us how energetic the voting population was to have a new sheriff and what we’re going to do is we’re going to do everything that we can to gain the trust and the confidence of the voters of Muscogee County,” he said. “We knew ever since I ran in 2016 that it would come down to this. We’re pretty excited about moving on to the next level in November and beating Greg Countryman for Sheriff of Muscogee County.”

This story was originally published June 10, 2020 at 2:39 PM.