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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spokane County Sheriff

Election Results

Candidate Votes Pct
Ozzie Knezovich (R) 176,793 86.18%
Dumpozzie Dot Com (Scott Maclay) (N) 28,345 13.82%

* Race percentages are calculated with data from the Secretary of State's Office, which omits write-in votes from its calculations when there are too few to affect the outcome. The Spokane County Auditor's Office may have slightly different percentages than are reflected here because its figures include any write-in votes.

The Candidates

Ozzie Knezovich

Party:
Republican
Age:
61
City:
Western Spokane County, Wash.
Occupation:
Spokane County sheriff

OZZIE KNEZOVICH

Education: Graduated from Rock Springs High School in Wyoming. Graduated from Weber State College with an integrated studies bachelor’s degree in 1985.

Work experience: Became town marshal in Superior, Wyoming in 1990. Joined Rock Springs, Wyoming police force in 1991. Joined Olympia Police Department in 1995. Joined Spokane County Sheriff’s Office as deputy in 1996. Became sergeant in 2004. Appointed Spokane County sheriff by county commissioners in 2006 and won election to the post in November of that year. Re-elected while unopposed in 2010.

Political experience: Former president of the Spokane County Deputy Sheriff’s Association. Former president of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Named to the FBI’s Law Enforcement Executive Development Association in 2008. Served as president of that group in 2012.

Military: U.S. Army airborne medical specialist and combat medic, served in Korea, 1987-90.

Family: Married, three grown children.

Dumpozzie Dot Com (Scott Maclay)

Party:
No party
City:
Spokane Valley, WA

Scott Maclay, who changed his name before filing to run for sheriff, died in a motorcycle crash in September 2018.

Complete Coverage

Thousands turn out for Spokane march honoring MLK

Two-and-a-half-year-old Aveline Jones plodded in her yellow shoes, pink pants and black coat with her hand firmly in her mother’s grasp Monday as they joined about 3,000 other marchers to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

Annemarie Frohnoefer: New jail won’t solve societal problems

County Commissioner Al French has proposed building a new jail, saying, “this can has been kicked down the road for too many years,” before adding that he needs to know an exact number of beds. The implication is that once the number is known then building can begin.

Rep. Matt Shea takes credit, criticism for document titled ‘Biblical Basis for War’

Washington state Rep. Matt Shea acknowledged Wednesday he had distributed a four-page manifesto titled “Biblical Basis for War,” which describes the Christian god as a “warrior,” details the composition and strategies of a “Holy Army” and condemns abortion and same-sex marriage. After the document was leaked online Tuesday, the Spokane Valley Republican insisted he was not promoting violence and that the message had been taken out of context.

Scott Maclay, sheriff’s candidate who changed name to DumpOzzie Dot Com, dies in motorcycle crash near St. Maries

Michael “Scott” Maclay, the Harley-riding respiratory therapist who changed his name to DumpOzzie Dot Com as part of a conspiracy-theory-fueled campaign to unseat Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, died in a motorcycle crash Monday afternoon near Mashburn, Idaho.

Sheriff candidate wins legal fight to avoid permanent protection order sought by ex-wife

A conspiracy theorist and candidate for Spokane County Sheriff has won his latest round to avoid a permanent protection order in a legal case brought by his ex-wife.

Republicans distance themselves from Allsup; Knezovich says he warned the party

Republican leaders continued to distance themselves from white nationalist James Allsup on Thursday, saying the Spokane County GOP chairwoman made an error in judgment when she introduced Allsup during a meeting of local conservatives earlier this month. Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, meanwhile, said he’d been sounding the alarm about Allsup for weeks, telling fellow conservatives it would be “a bad, bad idea” to give him a platform to speak.

Controversy, conflict no strangers to sheriff candidate Scott Maclay

The man seeking to unseat Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich claims that he helped bring down the Aryan Nations, was a member of the sheriff’s dive team and was the leading real estate agent in Spokane Valley for two decades. Court records and long-time acquaintances tell a different story.

Spokane County sheriff’s candidate vows to handle ‘growing Muslim problem’

A candidate for Spokane County sheriff is calling for the 24-hour monitoring of Muslims and says the Muslim religion is “the only real problem in Spokane County.”

Finance manager at Spokane County Jail terminated following investigation

The finance manager at the Spokane County Jail was let go from his job last month following an internal investigation.

Knezovich critic changes legal name to DumpOzzie Dot Com ahead of campaign for sheriff’s office

Scott Maclay, a frequent critic of Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, has legally changed his name to DumpOzzie Dot Com and said he plans to run against Knezovich in this year’s election.

Police shows like ‘Live PD’ would get more restrictions under new Spokane law

The Spokane City Council is set to vote on a measure Monday night that would require “reality-based police shows” to obtain a business license and consent from the people they film and broadcast to millions of viewers.