HUNTINGTON -- Retired Cabell County Sheriff's Lt. Thomas W. "Tom" McComas said he trained all of his life to be sheriff. Voters moved him another step closer to his dream on Tuesday, according to unofficial results from Tuesday's primary.
McComas received 5,870 votes to pass retired sheriff's deputy C.A. Adams, current County Commissioner Scott Bias and two other retired lawmen in the Democratic primary.
"I'm very happy," he said. "It's very exciting. I mean, I had to sacrifice to retire early to run. I weighed all of my options. A lot of factors came into play -- my age and so forth. This was the time for me to run, and I'm just so appreciative of all the voters and all of the people who helped me. It just hasn't sunk in yet."
Adams received the second-highest amount of support with 3,341 votes. Bias finished with 2,988 votes, Herman Beckett grabbed 1,963 and Greg Lawson received 1,493.
McComas was second in fundraising. Bias was the only candidate to raise more money, but the county commissioner also was the only candidate lacking law enforcement experience. McComas said he believed Tuesday's vote proved that Cabell County voters want a police officer as sheriff.
McComas will face Republican candidate Jim "Jimbo" Scheidler. The county's current chief deputy was unopposed in the Republican primary. He captured 4,125 votes out of 6,156 Republican ballots cast. He said his campaign will focus on fighting the drug war, increasing routine patrols and creating a remote tax office to assist residents in eastern Cabell County.
Scheidler said voters have had a great selection of candidates, and he knows winning in November will require cross-over support from Democrats. It's a challenge he looks forward to. He hopes to gain support from those who voted for Tuesday's losing candidates.
"It can be done," he said. "You've got to keep in mind, at least 16 years out of my 33, it's been a Republican sheriff."
Bias congratulated McComas on a running a hard-fought campaign, and he pledged his support in the general election. He said some people wanted him to stay on the commission, while others wanted a law enforcement person. He said it was a five-on-one race when Scheidler's law enforcement experience was included.
"I wish him well," Bias said of McComas. "I just tried to run a good race, but I had too many people opposed to me."
Bias said he always believed it would be a three-way race for the nomination. He finished 353 votes short of Adams' second-place finish.
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