Glander and Peterson, Candidates for Becker County Sheriff Participate in Candidate Forum in Detroit Lakes

Candidates for Becker County Sheriff, Chad Peterson and Sheriff Todd Glander participate in a candidate forum Sept. 26, 2022 in Detroit Lakes

DETROIT LAKES (KDLM) – Becker County’s two candidates for Sheriff were able to engage with the community, Monday during the first of two candidate forums held by the Detroit Lakes Area League of Women Voters.

Sheriff Todd Glander, who has been Sheriff in Becker County since 2015 is being challenged by Chad Peterson of Lake Park, Peterson says one of the biggest challenges in the county is a low hiring pool and communication, “We have to have consistency and communication, that’s been weak when I was there.”

Glander admitted staffing has been an issue, but as of Monday the Sheriff’s Department was fully staffed, “Staffing has been an issue…we’ve been down as many as seven for various reasons, I’m very grateful for the staff that I do have, we’ve let no call go unresponded.”

Mental Health was a hot topic, Monday, especially the issues of burnout and stress among deputies, Peterson and Glander said they would both like to see additional Mental Health programs and resources made to deputies, however Glander said funding poses a challenge, “There’s programs out there that I’m looking into…part of the problem is funding for these resources, so I’m looking at different ways to fund that.”

You can watch a recording of Monday night’s candidate forum with Peterson and Glander below.

The Detroit Lakes Area League of Women Voters plans to hold a similar forum Wednesday with Detroit Lakes City Council candidates and Detroit Lakes School Board candidates. The event will be held at the Detroit Lakes Police Department beginning at 6 p.m.