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Democratic Candidates for Summit County Sheriff Meet Up in Only Debate Before the Primary

The Democratic candidates for Summit County sheriff:  (from l. to r.) Dale Soltis, Patrick Hunt, Kandy Fatheree and John Peake
SHANE WYNN
The Democratic candidates for Summit County sheriff: (from l. to r.) Dale Soltis, Patrick Hunt, Kandy Fatheree and John Peake

Tuesday night, the four democratic candidates for Summit County sheriff met for the one and only debate of their campaign.  The event, sponsored by the Akron Press Club took place at the Akron Summit County Public library and was moderated by WKSU’s M.L. Schultze.

The four Democratic candidates are all current or retired sheriff’s deputies:

  • Kandy Fatheree, a captain who started her career with community policing and criminal investigations in Lakemore.
  • Patrick Hunt, a sergeant who retired in 2018 as a supervisor in the narcotics division after assignments in corrections, patrol and the detective bureau.
  • John Peake, a Navy veteran who retired shortly after becoming a captain following three decades in corrections, the patrol division, the honor guard unit and detective bureau.
  • Dale Soltis, who ran day-to-day operations at the Summit County Jail before retiring in 2017 to become the Stark County jail commander.

The winner will face Republican Shane Barker in the fall election. Barker was a captain who worked in corrections, patrol and other divisions before retiring in 2018 as field supervisor for the Summit County Drug Unit.

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Andrew joined WKSU News in 2014. He oversees the daily operations of the WKSU news department and its reporters and hosts, coordinates daily coverage, and serves as editor. His commitment is to help foster reporting that marks the best of what public radio has to offer: a mix of first-rate journalism with great storytelling. His responsibilities also include long-term strategic planning for news coverage in Northeast Ohio that serves WKSU’s audience via on-air, online, by social media and through emerging technologies. You can also hear Andrew on-air daily as the local host for Here and Now, Fresh Air, and The World.