Longtime spokesman poised to be elected Pierce County sheriff, according to early results
In the first contested race to elect a Pierce County sheriff in 48 years, voters appeared to be leaning toward longtime department spokesman Ed Troyer.
Troyer has a strong lead over his opponent, Lt. Cyndie Fajardo, with 64 percent to 32 percent, according to the first round of ballot returns released Tuesday night.
An estimated 70 percent of ballots had been counted.
“I’m humbled and honored. In these trying times with law enforcement, I’m up for the challenge. We do a lot of things really, really well in this department, but there are some things we can do better,” Troyer said. “I plan on moving things forward.”
He served as sheriff’s spokesman for 19 years and retired Oct. 30, saying it was a procedural move that gave him time to prepare to take the helm of the 750-member department.
The new sheriff is expected to take office in late November since former sheriff Paul Pastor retired in late September with three months left in his term.
Pastor, the longest-serving sheriff in Pierce County, endorsed Troyer after he left office.
He was appointed to the post in 2001 and was elected in 2008, when Pierce County reverted back electing sheriffs. Pastor ran unopposed in his last two terms.
Fajardo picked up an endorsement from the Deputy Sheriff’s Independent Guild.
Both candidates faced criticism and skepticism from the community.
Some activists recently have called for Troyer to be fired, saying he did not give an accurate account of what happened in the March 3 death of Manuel Ellis at the hands of Tacoma police and lambasting him for not apologizing to Ellis’ family.
Troyer has said he provided the information given to him by investigators and wishes he could speak in more detail about the case but cannot because it is an ongoing investigation.
Fajardo, who led the sheriff’s drug unit until it was disbanded in April, is being internally investigated. An outside agency found she may have violated 12 policies and procedures while in charge of the embattled Special Investigation Unit.
Among the potential violations are failing to adequately supervise her unit and lying about whether she informed superiors in a timely manner about fake police reports written to protect an informant who had been threatening by the Mexican cartel.
Fajardo and eight members of SIU have filed $1.5 million claims against Pastor, current Sheriff Brent Bomkamp, Prosecuting Attorney Mary Robnett and others in their administrations.
Troyer has said he will allow Fajardo to keep her position running emergency response for the department if he becomes sheriff.
Troyer watched the election results come in Tuesday with his family and about 80 supporters at Jazzbones in Tacoma.
He said he already has many plans for the department, including a community advisory board and bringing in a health-and-wellness expert for the deputies.
“Right now it’s hard being in our profession, and there’s some unwarranted criticism,” Troyer sad. “I want our people to know it’s OK to not be OK.”
He said he’d also like to strength ties with community groups, change deputy uniforms from dark blue to the traditional green and gold and identify family liaisons to work with investigators after police shootings.
Fajardo said she knew it would be difficult to overcome the name recognition Troyer has from being the face of the department for nearly two decades.
“Of course, we’re disappointed,” she said. “We thought we put on a good campaign and had an excellent platform.”
In the Aug. 4 primary, Troyer got 53 percent of the vote.
He spent $18,524 on his campaign and Fajardo spent $81,779, according to Public Disclosure Commission reports.
Raven Lirio contributed to this report.
This story was originally published November 3, 2020 at 8:23 PM.
