By Kari Lucin, staff writer

Of the eight Freeborn County positions up for grabs this year, the only one that’s contested so far is the position of sheriff.

Two candidates have filed: incumbent Sheriff Mark Harig and retired Albert Lea Police Department officer Bill Villarreal. Each man has a long history of law enforcement work and they have worked together often in the past.

&8220;It’s an election, it’s not a war,&8221; Villarreal said. &8220;I think it’s nice if people get a choice and they can hear what the current sheriff in office is saying.&8221;

Harig spent 29 years in the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office, including nine years in the regional special drug unit &045; where he often went undercover to do drug busts &045; before he was elected sheriff four years ago.

Villarreal joined the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office in 1977 and transferred to the ALPD in 1985, patrolling and serving as a liaison officer to Albert Lea schools, but he also spent three years as a jailer. He retired from the ALPD this year. Currently he is on the Albert Lea school board and works as a personal trainer at the Family Y.

Harig stressed the need for community awareness, specifically in the areas of continued drug and pandemic disease and emergency planning.

He said he will continue seeking grant sources for equipment and training needs, continue working with area police departments and the state patrol, research ways to increase departmental efficiency and promote emergency management as a full-time need for public safety. Harig also wanted to focus on the narcotics task force as well as on team tactics, plan for enhanced equipment needs and give employees more specialized training.

Villarreal emphasizes the need for community policing, particularly the need for law enforcement officers to get out of their cars and into the community more often. If elected, he said he would put more current law enforcement personnel on the street and save money through strategic planning and prioritizing for large purchases. He believes law enforcement needs to invest in kids.

If another candidate files, the election primary will be held Sept. 12. The general election is slated for Nov. 7.