Editor’s note: With early voting running through July 14, Bethesda Beat will be publishing election wrap-ups of the races for Montgomery County offices and the General Assembly. Today we focus on the Montgomery County sheriff’s race
Come December, there will be a new sheriff in town … or at least in Montgomery County.
Sheriff Darren Popkin, who has served since 2010, announced last year that he would be stepping down at the end of his third term in December. Popkin told Bethesda Beat last year that he isn’t retiring, but hopes to spend more time with his family.
Two Democrats are running to succeed Popkin in the July 19 primary: Chief Deputy Maxwell Uy of Clarksburg and Robert Bass of Silver Spring, a former NFL football player and former county deputy sheriff. No Republican candidates have filed in the race.
The sheriff’s responsibilities, according to the county website, include:
- Court security and criminal transportation
- Criminal warrant service
- Service of process for the county court system
- Child support enforcement
- Combating domestic violence
Here are the candidates:
Maxwell Uy
Uy, 49, has worked in the county sheriff’s office since 1994 and previously was in the Army, serving as part of the Honor Guard for the Third U.S. Infantry Regiment and as an active-duty member during the Persian Gulf War in the early 1990s.
In 28 years with the sheriff’s office, Uy has worked in the criminal, domestic violence and court and transportation sections, according to his campaign website. In his role as the chief deputy, he oversees the operations of all divisions within the office.
In his candidate questionnaire for Bethesda Beat’s 2022 voters guide, Uy wrote that one of his priorities is to ensure deputies are properly trained, and that de-escalation training is provided through entry level and in-service classes. Uy also emphasized the need for the office to conduct outreach to diverse communities in the county, and to recruit diverse candidates to be deputies.
Robert Bass
Bass, 51, played football at the University of Miami from 1991 to 1994, and during his first season Miami was co-winner of the national championship with the University of Washington. He then embarked on a short NFL career that included stints with the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers before working as player development director for the Miami Dolphins.
Bass’s football career was followed by eight years with the Montgomery County sheriff’s office as a deputy, and another eight years that he spent running a private security service.
Bass wrote in his voters guide questionnaire that the sheriff’s office must do more outreach to residents to ensure they feel safe. He has proposed the creation of a commission to ensure best practices among deputies and the creation of partnerships with other agencies and community organizations.
When is the election?
The primary election is July 19. Early voting runs through July 14. Mail-in ballots will be accepted as long as they are postmarked by 8 p.m. July 19 or are dropped into a ballot drop box by that time.
Dan Schere can be reached at daniel.schere@moco360.media
