Johnson declares victory in sheriff’s race over incumbent Fortney

EVERETT — Susanna Johnson has worked almost every job in the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

Now, she can add a new line to her resume: sheriff.

After the latest vote count Thursday night, Johnson declared victory in the race for Snohomish County sheriff, ending a heated and expensive campaign against incumbent Sheriff Adam Fortney.

The county auditor’s office tallied 50,000 more votes in the race by Thursday evening, showing Johnson holding onto a slim but decisive lead over Fortney: 51.45% to 48.45%.

Johnson, now the deputy police chief in Bothell, had garnered 92,349 votes to Fortney’s 86,964 — a gap of 5,385 votes. Only 500 more still needed to be counted, plus mail-in ballots still en route to the auditor’s office.

The Daily Herald called the race for Johnson shortly after 5 p.m. on Thursday.

“I am honored and humbled to be elected as Snohomish County’s next Sheriff,” Johnson said in a written statement about an hour later, “and I renew the promise I made one year ago to lead our Sheriff’s Office with integrity and respect, wearing the badge that must symbolize public trust.”

After weeks of persistent campaigning on social media, Fortney broke a three-day silence Friday, conceding on his Facebook campaign page that the results were “not what we wanted.”

“I am so incredibly proud of the four years time I had as your Sheriff in the county that I grew up in,” Fortney wrote. “I am also so incredibly proud of the team and employees around me that accomplished so much during the most unprecedented time in public safety history.”

He said he believed he had “remained authentic” to who he was as a person and had not changed due “to changing political winds or tides.”

Fortney went on to criticize the Johnson campaign: “The saddest thing to me about this entire year is that my opponent won this race by convincing enough of our public that I am racist and she even got the head of the state democrat party to call me a white supremacist, yet she’s never met me or been in a room with me.”

It was unclear what moment in the campaign Fortney was referring to. The state Democratic Party did not respond to request for comment. Fortney did not either.

The sheriff defended his record in the post, noting it would be his last comments on the Facebook page about the election.

“If you have to win a local race for Sheriff by painting a US Navy veteran and 27 year member of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office with an impeccable record as somehow being a racist, and you are comfortable telling voters this story, I think this reflects more on my opponent than me,” Fortney wrote in the post. “It is unfortunate to me that there are people in this world like my opponent where a political seat is worth publicly trashing another human being with these character defamations.”

Johnson campaigned on restoring what was, in her view, a loss of public trust in county law enforcement under the incumbent.

“One year ago, almost to the day, I announced my campaign to restore professionalism, respect, and integrity to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office,” Johnson said in a press release Thursday. “After over thirty years in law enforcement this was a new adventure, but throughout I was moved by the outpouring of support from public safety leaders, elected officials, Tribes, essential workers, volunteers, donors, and more.”

In a three-decade career at the sheriff’s office, Johnson served as a patrol deputy, detective, K-9 handler, SWAT squad leader, sergeant, lieutenant, captain and bureau chief.

Fortney is a former patrol sergeant in the K-9 unit and ex-president of the deputy sheriff’s union. In his first campaign in 2019, he won on a tough-on-crime message, pledging to “take the handcuffs off police officers and put them on the criminals where they belong.” He received over 55% of the vote, unseating incumbent Ty Trenary, who later endorsed Johnson, along with all four other living Snohomish County ex-sheriffs.

This time, Fortney ran on his record and the motto “accountability with compassion.” The campaign became a referendum on the sheriff’s policies, public statements and personality, as well as relationships with controversial conservative politicians including Sheriff Mark Lamb, of Arizona, and former state Rep. Robert Sutherland, who pushed conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election.

Fortney said Johnson’s campaign rhetoric led to him receiving negative messages.

“There are consequences to this type of speech and I am living through them now. You can see the consequences in the comments of my social media page where they get pretty horrific,” Fortney wrote. “One email I received yesterday stated it this way, ‘So happy to see a racist pos like you shown the door. Get out of our neighborhood as well.’ Of course, it was anonymous.”

“We love Snohomish County and will continue to fight for it,” he added.

As late as Wednesday, Fortney supporters on social media held onto a glimmer of hope that the ballot count would swing in his direction. Johnson’s initial lead of 4,995 had narrowed by 400 votes in the second tally released that day.

On Election Day, Johnson was “cautiously optimistic” about the initial results, 52.2% to 47.6%.

On Wednesday, she led 51.7% to 48.2%, then 51.5% to 48.5% on Thursday.

Countywide turnout in the election was just over 35.7%.

It was by far the most expensive race for sheriff in Snohomish County history, and one of the most expensive sheriff’s races in state history.

Together, the campaigns raked in $525,000.

Johnson raised $223,119, plus $39,098 in outside contributions almost entirely from gun control groups, totaling over $262,000.

Fortney took in $214,238, plus $49,220 from a political action committee known as Responsible Economic Growth in Our Neighborhood, for a total over $263,000.

Campaign spending in the sheriff’s race was the 10th-most around the state this year, outpaced by races for Spokane mayor, six Seattle City Council seats, the Spokane City Council president and a King County Council position.

The Snohomish County sheriff serves a four-year term with an annual salary of $179,725.91.

The next ballot drop was set for 5 p.m. Monday. The results are expected to be certified Nov. 28.

Correction: A previous version of this story had an incorrect date for the next ballot drop.

Jordan Hansen: 425-339-3046; jordan.hansen@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @jordyhansen.