ORLANDO, Fla. – Retired Orlando Police Chief John Mina has been elected the next Orange County sheriff, replacing Jerry Demings, who stepped down from the role to run for mayor.
Mina faced off against veteran member of the Florida Highway Patrol Joe Lopez and Democrat Darryl Sheppard in the race. He was endorsed by every mayor in Orange County, including Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs.
Shortly after the race was called, Mina celebrated his victory on Twitter.
There's a new Sheriff in town!
— Sheriff John Mina (@SheriffMina) November 7, 2018
In his acceptance speech Tuesday night, Mina thanked the people of Orange County for their confidence in him.
"Thank you to the voters of Orange County. Thank you for looking past politics and choosing me to help keep this community safe," Mina said.
During a debate hosted by News 6 one week before the election, Mina said his decades of experience in law enforcement -- including overseeing 1,000 personnel at the Orlando Police Department -- made him the clear choice for sheriff.
Mina again emphasized in his acceptance speech Tuesday that he believes he is the most fit candudate to serve the county.
"As soon as I started hitting the early voting polling places, I had a pretty good idea that my experience and the relationships that I had built over these past 28 years in this community that I love would make me your next sheriff," he said.
Also in the debate last week, Mina mentioned his commitment to reduce the crime rate, provide opioid intervention for those in need and promote community engagement with law enforcement.
"The thing we need to do, concentrate on the most, is prevention and intervention. I think our kids know heroin and drugs are dangerous but they don't realize you can use that drug one time and it could kill you," Mina said.
Lopez voiced similar stances during that debate, saying that there needs to be more deputies on the street interacting with citizens and promoting trust. Sheppard talked about increasing transparency and accountability and the need to change the status quo when it comes to policing practices.
Mina was declared the winner Tuesday when Sheppard was still trailing closely behind in votes.
Later in the evening, with 97 percent of precincts reporting, Mina had 45 percent of the vote. Sheppard had 40 percent and Lopez had 13 percent.
After the race was called, Mina said he was looking forward to leading the agency after Demings.
"The good thing is, Sheriff Demings, now Mayor-elect Demings, has left me with a very extremely professional law enforcement agency," Mina said. "But I'm going to put my own spin on that agency as well."
He said he will continue working to build trust between law enforcement and the community by being a hands-on leader.
"I will lead by example. You will see me out in the community. You will see me reading to your children. You will see me playing with your children and talking to residents and business owners," Mina said.
On Tuesday, he said his top priorities once in office, in addition to community engagement, will be keeping children safe in schools, keeping up with the county's growth and reducing violent crime.
Mina will be sworn in as sheriff on Dec. 4.