Candidate Profile: Chad Leonard, Dallas County Sheriff

First elected in January 2007 and re-elected in November 2008, Chad Leonard is seeking a third term - his second full term - as Dallas County Sheriff.

Running against former West Des Moines police officer and fellow Republican candidate, Jim Romar, Leonard has said if re-elected, he will continue to operate the Dallas County Sheriff's office with integrity and respect for the people he represents in Dallas County.

On his website, Leonard wrote: "As sheriff, I will not try to build trust just by talking about it; I will build it by achieving results, always with integrity and in a manner that shows real personal regard for the people I serve."

Endorsements

In his campaign for re-election, Leonard has garnered endorsements from several top Waukee officials including Mayor Bill Peard, Waukee Chief of Police Larry Phillips, and Waukee Fire Chief Clint Robinson.

Peard's endorsement was part of a group of Dallas County mayors supporting Leonard for re-election that included Jim Peters from Adel, Steve Gaer from West Des Moines and Mitch Hambleton from Dallas Center, among others.

Other notable endorsements include:

• Greg Breuer, Lieutenant, Waukee Police Department
• Jake Chapman, President, Young Republicans of Dallas County
• Jeff Mullen, Lead Pastor, Point of Grace Church
• Larry Phillips, Chief of Police, Waukee
• Clint Robinson, Chief, Waukee Fire Department
• Ralph Watts, State Representative
• Marggie Weir, Administrative Assistant, Waukee Police Department

Campaign Spending

Campaign finance reports filed last week with the Iowa Ethics & Campaign Disclosure Board show that Leonard has raised more than he's spent so far leaving him with a bit of a surplus.

According to reports, Leonard started out his campaign with $2,161.69 cash on hand. After $15,734 in contributions, Leonard stood at $17,895.69 total raised. After expenditures of $12,946.79, he's left with nearly $5,000 ($4,948.90).

Some of Leonard's single biggest contributors included:

• Dave Herrick, Adel - $500
• Mary Kay Bruce, West Des Moines - $500
• Richard Beller, Clive - $500
• Diane Ruxlow, West Des Moines - $300
• Robert Taylor, West Des Moines - $250
• Kellie Paschke, Waukee - $250
• Wassen LLC, West Des Moines - $250
• Jeffrey Mullen, West Des Moines - $250
• Oliver Bardwell, DeSoto - $250
• Luke Little, Redfield - $200

Leonard on Jim Romar

With no public forums scheduled before the June 5 primary, Waukee Patch approached both Leonard and Romar about participating in a question and answer. Leonard declined the invitation in an e-mail by stating:

"With just a week remaining before the primary election, the candidates' work should be done except for any remaining questions from undecided voters. My campaign has offered numerous opportunities for both Mr. Romar and the public to question me on any concern about the Dallas County Sheriff's Office.

At this late date, I have no questions for Mr. Romar, and I am confident that we have presented Dallas County voters with a complete, verifiable case for my re-election."

For more information, visit http://leonardforsheriff.com.