Greenville Co. sheriff's race underway as two vie for top spot

GREENVILLE COUNTY, SC (WSPA) – Protecting and serving Greenville County is what both candidates for Greenville County Sheriff said is most important.

Sheriff Hobart Lewis was elected in 2020. He is now seeking re-election.

“I’ve been fortunate to be sheriff this long and I hope there are many more,” Lewis said.

He said his department has been successful in reducing the number of violent crimes, solving cold cases, taking drugs and drug dealers off the streets, while creating strong relationships with local agencies.

“Our homicide rate. We’ve fixed 100 percent of these issues for two years in a row,” Lewis said. “Our cold case unit has done a good job. We're at 12 unsolved cases, we had about 100 when we took office, so bringing closure to these families was a very big deal for us.

Lewis said it was the people around him that led to his success.

“The biggest concern is our people,” Sheriff Lewis said. “We have about 590 deputies, a little over 120 civilian employees and you worry about them.”

Former deputy Mike Fortner is running against Lewis.

Fortner began his career in law enforcement in 1992, serving in uniformed patrol and investigations before moving into internal affairs and accreditation. He retired in 2022, but said he was ready to serve again.

“You have two groups of voters,” Fortner said. “There are the citizens of Greenville County and then there are the employees of the sheriff’s office, so I’m running for both.”

Fortner said he believes the sheriff's office can become more efficient, saying he would like to see nearly 400 additional deputies hired within the department.

If elected, Fortner wants to create a citizen academy, which would include six to eight weeks of classes where citizens could see what goes on in the sheriff's office.

“It gives us a pool of volunteers. If someone wanted to volunteer at the sheriff's office for various civilian-type tasks, they could volunteer, which is just another way to help supplement the the sheriff's office,” Fortner said.

Both candidates agreed that keeping crime rates low would be the top priority as the county continues to grow.

Fortner said he thinks the sheriff's office could do a better job.

“I think the key to fighting crime is partnerships with the community and having high visibility with deputies, which helps make it more effective,” Fortner said.

Both candidates said they hope you get out and vote. Early voting has begun. The primary elections will take place on Tuesday, June 11.