This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder sprinted to a second term Tuesday night, outpacing GOP challenger Beau Babka, according to unofficial returns.
The Democratic incumbent, smiling and confident shortly after polls closed, thanked voters and said he was proud of his campaign.
"I'm looking forward to working even harder on consolidated law enforcement," said Winder, who pledged to partner with cities on jail overcrowding. "We ran a positive campaign. We tried to keep discussing the issues."
Babka, who mounted an aggressive push to unseat Winder, could not translate that energy into enough votes, , according to unofficial returns.
The race became partly a referendum on the Unified Police Department, and which career cop should steer it.
Winder argued the UPD, which he dubbed Utah's "first police co-op," is a must. But Babka criticized the incumbent for pushing the creation of the UPD in a down economy.
Neither candidate was a fan of the new police fee. Babka said Winder should have done more to stop it, while the first-term sheriff blamed the bump on county leaders.
Winder insisted he is a hands-on cop, not a politician. He touted the reopening of Oxbow Jail and overall budget cut as key accomplishments in the midst of a recession. Winder also trumpeted initiatives to curb senior abuse, bring more women into policing and to provide in-jail health services as reasons for a second term.
Babka, a former police chief and current Cottonwood Heights officer, vowed to open all of Oxbow for a trial period. After changing political parties, Babka highlighted his own experience. He pointed to long stints teaching criminal justice to college students and his oversight of multiple jail programs as reasons to give him the top badge.
Reporter Katie Drake contributed to this story.