On the heels of a heated race for Oxford County sheriff, and an incumbent’s final gasp in the race for Androscoggin County sheriff, debate about the role of county government in Maine should be revived.

County government is a Colonial leftover, rooted in medieval Britain. Colonists established counties to provide, above all, one specific service – administration of justice – which makes today’s Maine sheriffs literal descendants of fabled characters like the Sheriff of Nottingham.

“In the New England states, the county developed little beyond the sphere of judicial administration,” wrote Frank Updyke, a political scientist at Dartmouth College, in 1913. “The local autonomy of the town hindered the development of the powers of the more artificial district of the county.”

How little things have changed.

Maine has arguably the narrowest form of county government remaining in New England.

Vermont, Rhode Island and Connecticut have turned counties into mere geographic boundaries. In 1997, lawmakers in Massachusetts purged five counties and absorbed their services into the state.

New Hampshire has ten counties with similar duties to Maine – jailing, prosecution, recording deed transfers – but serve also as regional assistance agencies for social services, such as eldercare, nursing home administration, and aid to needy children and families, especially those embroiled in the county justice system.

Counties in Maine do provide funding for nonprofits engaged in those services, but most tax dollars for counties are absorbed by jails and sheriff’s offices. Some counties also have regional dispatching centers, solid waste facilities, or airports.

Overall, the Maine counties are weak, with services – especially corrections and law enforcement – arguably better administered by state or local governments. Some say weak counties may contribute to duplicative services that hurt Maine taxpayers.

“Maine’s weak system of county government may force relatively more duties on to the state government,” states Philip Trostel, a University of Maine economist, in an October paper on Maine government.

Maine’s state police payroll is 30 percent higher than the national average, and 16 percent higher than other rural states, according to Trostel. “It could be the case that, in Maine, state police perform duties that are done by county police in most other states,” he states.

Yet, given this ineffective environment, voters wade through campaigns to choose its leaders. David Duguay, an Oxford County commissioner, wondered recently if politics still has a place in counties, and advocated for appointed sheriffs, treasurers and registrars of deeds and probate.

Duguay raises a good point, as do the sheriff races in Oxford and Androscoggin counties. At the very least, law enforcement officers should be chosen on merit, not campaigning. The same goes for those entrusted with county finances, and recording important legal documents.

Renee Bernier, president of the Lewiston City Council, recently said county government has been “in the dark too long.” She’s correct, especially if her statement is interpreted as “Dark Ages.”

Maine’s counties need to do more to prove their value. Appointing, instead of electing, key officials is a start.