Chadbourn Police Chief Ken Elliott is the latest candidate to throw his hat in the ring for the Republican nomination for sheriff.
“I am not doing this for me,” Elliott said. “I want to do all I can to help our county. Everyone in our county deserves to be treated the same way – fairly, with respect and empathy.”
Elliott is a U.S. Navy veteran, having served as a corpsman. Upon discharge he became a firefighter and paramedic, then got his start with law enforcement in 2002 with the Loris Police Department. He worked with the sheriff’s office here in the patrol division and investigations before going to work with the Chadbourn Police.
Elliott became Interim Chief when former Chief Anthony Spivey was arrested on drug charges, and was appointed permanent chief of police in 2022. Elliott also served as interim town manager for Chadbourn during the same period. He noted that he has experience in every specialty in law enforcement, including patrol, traffic, investigations, narcotics, training officer and even two stints as a K9 handler.
“I’ve done just about every job there is in a department,” he said.
His time as town manager, Elliott was responsible for managing multiple departments as well as reporting to the town board and balancing a budget.
“Things happen,” he said, “but you have got to be able to stick to a budget as close as possible. You plan ahead for emergencies. You can’t go asking the taxpayers for more money because you didn’t look ahead, trying to think in advance what the next year and the year after is going to require. It takes planning and management to keep things in line while still taking care of your staff and department, and serving the taxpayer.”
Elliott said he wants to shift the county to a precinct system, following the lead of other growing rural counties that in turn have emulated larger cities. He also emphasized the need for community policing at all local levels.
“After 9/11,” he said, “community policing went out the window. There was so much focus on preventing homegrown, domestic terrorism, that we slid away from that. I want to see that attitude change.”
Self-contained precinct offices would be manned and open in his administration, Elliott said.
“An empty substation does no good,” he said. “Under a precinct system, deputies would be assigned to an area, and work out of there. They wouldn’t have to come all the way to Whiteville, and neither would the citizens. Taxpayers would be able to speak to a deputy in 15 minutes, instead of an hour or more if they got rerouted to go to the other end of the county.
“Assigning deputies to particular precincts will improve service and save money,” he said. “it’s been proven. You save gas and wear and tear on vehicles, you can save on overtime. Most importantly, response time and communication improve. If you lived in Nakina, you would have a deputy or detective from your precinct responding to you. You wouldn’t necessarily have to wait for a deputy to come from Riegelwood or Cerro Gordo, which in turn leaves those areas without coverage.
“Plus, the sooner you can get a deputy working on a case, the sooner you can make an arrest or recover stolen property.”
Elliott said part of the reason crime rates have dropped in Chadbourn has been his department’s focus on community policing. It is not an instant fix, he said, but a combination of education, training, and being part of a community has helped in his town, and could help in the county as well.
“Community isn’t just Tabor City or Whiteville, or Chadbourn or Bolton, or Hallsboro. We have a lot of communities out there, rural communities that need to know they are respected and will be served.
“The officers, or the deputies in this case, need to be out greeting people. Seeing them, talking to them. The residents need to know their law enforcement officers, and be comfortable with them. Then they become our extra eyes and ears. We can’t be everywhere at once, and this is a massive county. Deputies need to be able to take the time and get out and talk with people in their communities, get to know them.
“People need the confidence that comes from knowing their deputies care and will respond if they have a concern, and that if they have business with the sheriff’s office, they don’t have to spend half a day driving to Whiteville.”
Elliott said he is planning to hold a series of public meetings where he can get to know residents across the county, and hear their concerns. He said he also looks forward to establishing a violence diversion program that will work hand in hand with DARE to slow the rise in juvenile crime.
“We need to identify the causes of these problems and cut them off before they get a foothold,” he said.
Elliott was frank about his own experiences.
“I know about single family households and the challenges they face,” he said. “I was raised in one. My dad was a violent man. He later changed, but my mom left him and raised me on her own.
“I might not know exactly what someone has gone through, but I have experienced similar things. I have been a victim of crime in this county. My wife has been a victim of crime here. We understand the frustration that comes with that.”
He said he sees law enforcement as a major part of progress in any growing community.
“I want us to have a safe county where people are proud to say they’re from here,” he said. “For too long people have associated bad news with Columbus. I want people from outside of Columbus County to think of the good things we have going on. Law enforcement is just part of that formula. We have good things happening here, and the potential for more if we have a good, safe community.”
A native of Tabor City, Elliott and his wife Beverly live in Cherry Grove. He is also a Shriner.
Elliott will be on the ballot with appointed sheriff Bill Rogers, former CCSO deputy and Animal Protective Services director Josh McPherson, and former Whiteville Police Officer Josh Harris. No Democrat candidates have announced intentions to run for sheriff.
Filing for office begins in December for the March 3, 2026 primary.
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