Current Undersheriff Jackie Salvatore and retired Lieutenant John Rivero are vying to replace Sheriff Don Krapf, who decided not to run for reelection.
Salvatore, who is running as a Democrat after campaigning as an independent with Krapf in 2021, says she’s seen how many officers are feeling tired or overwhelmed as a result of mandatory overtime. She says recruitment goes hand-in-hand with another goal: improving police-community relations across the county.
“We have to be present and interacting with people. If they only see us in a negative scenario, that’s really not a place where you want to try to recruit people," says Salvatore. "I know once we are able to increase our numbers, and mandatory overtime decreases — what the public receives is a much better, happier, well-rested person. And that shows.”
The Sheriff’s Office has about 175 full and part-time employees, according to its website.
Salvatore is a lifelong resident of Columbia County and a nearly 30-year veteran of the New York State Police. If elected, she would be the first woman of color to lead the Sheriff’s Office.
Rivero is also a lifelong Columbia County resident and touts a 26-year career in law enforcement, most of which has been in the Sheriff’s Office. When he retired from the department in 2022, he went back to school at Siena University, where he worked as a public safety lieutenant and finished his Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice & Human Rights. Rivero tells WAMC he’s ready to bring what he’s learned to his former colleagues.
“What I gained from that experience was not only the education, but sitting in a classroom with other people that were interested in the criminal justice field: what they were hoping to do, what they were hoping to accomplish, and what they were looking for from their employers," says Rivero. "Getting that unique perspective from the next workforce, I think, helped me to know what it will be that attracts them to the sheriff’s office.”
Like Salvatore, Rivero says the office needs to be more present in the community. He specifically wants to see the office at more job fairs across the region.
Both candidates agree that retaining officers and improving officer quality-of-life are equally important. Salvatore says she’s already started working on that by launching an “employee assistance” program for officers struggling with their mental health.
“Just to make certain that they have an outlet. My door’s always open," she adds. "And we work with Dutchess, Ulster and Greene Counties as well, just to make sure that one agency is not bearing the financial brunt of services.”
As for the issues in Columbia County, Salvatore and Rivero say the opioid epidemic is among those having the hardest impact on families. Salvatore says her approach to the crisis would prioritize intervention, prevention and rehabilitation, and that she is already part of multiple groups aimed at supporting those struggling with substance use.
If elected, Rivero says his first move would be to crack down on opioid dealers in the county. His second would be to partner with outreach organizations like Greener Pathways in Hudson.
“It’s not a problem that we can arrest our way out of," he notes. "If there does come a time where someone needs to be arrested or held accountable for their actions, then there needs to be a support system. There needs to be a mechanism for them to at least get help, or get the opportunity for help.”
Ultimately, Salvatore says the sheriff’s job boils down to employee management, budgeting, discipline and contract negotiation — all things she says she’s had experience doing for the New York State Police, her family’s construction business, and her job as undersheriff.
“In the position of undersheriff, I’m currently doing a lot of it," she adds. "So, it’s not a big stretch...It’s really just sliding over and seeing what we can improve upon.”
Rivero says he also gained that supervisory and administrative experience by working his way up the office he hopes to lead. While he’s running on the Conservative and Republican lines and considers himself a lifelong Republican, Rivero says he’d like to keep politics out of the equation.
“I’m asking for people in this election to vote for the person, not the party," he says. "If you go to my website, I actually put my resume on my website. Because I’m looking at this as a job interview, where I’m hoping that the people of Columbia County will hire me to be their sheriff with their vote in November.”
Salvatore is also running on the Working Families Party line. Election Day is November 4.
