This morning, Hometown Headlines published a post titled “The real political story dominating the rest of 2018 is the sizzling sheriff’s race — in 2020. Two candidates have declared; we could see five more.” Click here to read it and scroll down for Dave’s full interview with Natalie Simms of Hometown Headlines.
Why are you running for Floyd County Sheriff?
In the simplest terms, because I love this community, I want to help make Floyd County better and safer for all who live here, and I care deeply about the hard-working men and women at the Sheriff’s Office.
As I’ve said before, I'm very proud of the good work our team has done under the tremendous leadership of Sheriff Tim Burkhalter, but we must continuously strive for improvement and do even more to support our communities. The citizens of Floyd County deserve that, and I look forward to bringing new energy and ideas to the table.
I come from a family of public servants and truly consider the people at the Sheriff’s Office to be part of my family as well. I want to protect them, treat them with respect, and make sure we are doing what’s right and best for all the citizens of Floyd County.
We’re still two years away. Why did you formally announce your candidacy now?
Quite honestly, the word was leaking quickly. My campaign team and I had always planned to announce mid-year, but it got to the point where I was being approached daily by people who were anticipating my decision to run. These people were excited and wanted to be part of the movement, so we felt that the time was right to capitalize on this momentum.
I can’t express how grateful I am for all of the encouraging words and offers of personal and monetary support. To my coworkers, the members of our more broad public safety family, community leaders, friends, and family members who are behind me, I am humbled and truly honored. I will work hard to make you proud and to earn the trust and support of the voters.
So far just two candidates have officially announced their candidacy, including yourself; we’re hearing lots of chatter of other names that will join the race. What will you do, or can you do, to make yourself “stand out” amongst the pack?
I’ve held supervisory roles in each of the four divisions of the Sheriff’s Office during my 23 years of continuous service, which makes me uniquely qualified to lead. However, as I’ve said before, while experience is certainly necessary, effective leaders need more than that — they must be able to connect with, empathize with, motivate, and inspire people to want to do and achieve greater things. This is the way I’ve always tried to operate with my teams and I will continue to do so.
One of my priorities is to meet and foster relationships with as many citizens as possible and really listen to them. This is something I’ve done throughout my career as I’ve worked in our various communities in Floyd County. I’m out on the roads every day talking to people in Lindale, Coosa, Cave Spring, South Rome, North Rome, Armuchee... Building these personal connections with citizens and my fellow employees is critical to my work. It’s important to hear the issues on people’s minds and the concerns they have so that I can help find solutions. I also want to hear their ideas on the best ways to keep the Sheriff’s Office moving in a positive direction. This is something I will continue to do regardless of what happens in this election because it’s personal to me.
I believe that collaboration, teamwork, and strategic partnerships are the keys to making Floyd County a better, safer community for all the families that live here, and I’m committed to working this way with our agencies, organizations, government, and community groups. This is the approach we must take in order to tackle things like mental health, the opioid crisis, school safety, and other critical issues we’re facing as a community.
Additionally, I will continue to be committed to serving our community in my personal life. This is something that has always been important to me. So you will still see me running 5ks for local charities on a regular basis (join me at the F&P Georgia Annual Charity 5k and Health Walk to benefit Harbor House on June 15!), volunteering with various youth-focused initiatives, and serving organizations like the Sexual Assault Center of NWGA that are doing critical work here in Floyd County. However, you will not see me on stage at the Rome Celebrity Dance Challenge this year. Been there, done that — now, it’s Sheriff Burkhalter’s turn!
What things are you doing now to prepare for the race, in terms of getting an election committee together, fundraising, volunteers, etc.?
We have assembled a great campaign team called Citizens for Roberson full of people who are dedicated, motivated, talented and who care about this community as much as I do. I’m fortunate to have so many wonderful people on the team and thankful to those who have reached out just since our announcement expressing a desire to be involved in some way. It’s been incredible!
My focus for the immediate future will be continuing to meet and listen to citizens from across the community, raising the funds that will be necessary to execute a successful campaign, and sharing elements of my platform at a series of events in the coming months.
How can folks find out more about your candidacy?
Visit our website www.voteroberson.com or check out Dave Roberson for Floyd County Sheriff on Facebook. We can also be found on Instagram and Twitter by searching @voteroberson. Our campaign committee can be contacted at CitizensForRoberson@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you!