AUBURN – One day after his narrow victory in the democratic race for Androscoggin County sheriff, Guy Desjardins refused to strut.
The winning margin was close – 30 votes by the Sun Journal’s calculations – too close for boastful talk.
“I feel confident that I won,” Desjardins said Wednesday. “But Ron Gagnon is still the sheriff until Dec. 1.”
Tuesday’s victory earned Desjardins the democratic nomination as sheriff, a post that will almost surely be his following the general election in November, when his name will be the only one on the ballot.
“I may be unopposed but I won’t be resting on my laurels,” Desjardins said.
Within the next week or two, he plans to begin attending town and city meetings across the county. And when the county budget discussions begin in August or September, he hopes to play a role.
“By playing a role, I mean I want to sit there and listen,” he said. “It’s going to be my budget to manage.”
Desjardins had been among the department’s top administrators, working as chief deputy for Gagnon for 11 years. However, Desjardins was fired on Jan. 6. The two disagreed over management styles, the former chief deputy said.
Desjardins immediately announced his plan to run against Gagnon, his former boss and longtime friend.
Desjardins’ campaign focused on finding new ways to pay the county’s bills – rather than by property taxes – and opening the office of sheriff to greater visibility in the region.
“I want them to know who I am and what I stand for,” Desjardins said.
He wants leaders from every local town and city to understand how the county works. He also wants them to know that the county will serve the municipalities, he said.
“They have a big share in our budget,” Desjardins said.
Issues such as the consolidated dispatch system, which could merge police and sheriff’s deputies on one radio system, concern towns and the county alike.
Money, particularly where the county finds its nearly $6 million operating budget, will continue to be the primary issue.
“If you can solve that, a lot of the other problems go away,” Desjardins said.
For now, though, he hopes the victory will sink in.
At 8 a.m. Wednesday, he began picking up his campaign signs from roadsides, setting them in the back of a noisy diesel truck. Many were damaged, but Desjardins planned to set aside a few for the general election, five months away.
“I’m still running in November,” he said.
And he’s beginning the transition, one that hasn’t happened since Gagnon took office 21 years ago.
Within the county leadership, Desjardins vowed to keep a low profile until he takes office. He’s not the boss, yet.
“There is only one sheriff in this county,” he said. “That’s Ron Gagnon.”
The Sun Journal was unable to reach Gagnon Wednesday.
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