County board members pushing advisory referendum to voters to recall Campbell

Five Democrat Sangamon County Board members are pushing for an advisory referendum to give voters a say on the future of Sheriff Jack Campbell at the ballot box in November.

The county board would have to pass the referendum at its Aug. 13 meeting for it to get on the ballot.

Even if it passes the voters on Nov. 5, Campbell would not be bound to resign.

Campbell, a Republican, has been sheriff since 2018 and is next up for election in 2026.

Several Democrat county board members have called for Campbell's resignation in light of the July 6 fatal shooting of Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman, by a sheriff's deputy.

Sean P. Grayson , who was fired after shooting Massey in the face, faces first-degree murder charges. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in Sangamon County Court on July 18 and remains in custody.

Several members of Massey's family, most prominently her father, James Wilburn , have called for Campbell to go.

One of those board members pushing for the advisory referendum, Sam Cahnman , said Tuesday "the best way to find out what the electorate wants is through an election."

Campbell, in a one-on-one interview with The State Journal-Register Thursday and at a sometimes-heated public listening session put on by the U.S. Department of Justice community relations service, said he would not resign.

"I was elected sheriff to lead this office and protect the people of the county through good times and bad and certainly we're going through a rough time right now," Campbell told the SJ-R. "For me to abandon the sheriff's office now would be irresponsible. We're certainly suffering, and the community is suffering, and I want to be here to help lead out of this situation that we're in."

Campbell admitted the department "failed the community. We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya's family and friends."

Grayson's hiring has also come into question, given that he had two DUI convictions before joining the law enforcement ranks. He was separated from the U.S. Army for "misconduct (serious offense)" on Feb. 27, 2016.

Some of Grayson's references for the sheriff's deputy position in Springfield noted he needed more on-the-job training.

Cahnman said although the vote would be advisory, "the Jack Campbell I know is an honest, dedicated public servant, and I believe he would heed the will of the voters."

Also sponsoring the resolution were Marc Ayers, Tony DelGiorno, Kevin McGuire and Gina Lathan.

Twenty of the county board members are Republicans with eight Democrats. There is one vacancy, though that seat will need to be filled by a Republican.

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788; sspearie@sj-r.com; X, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: County board members pushing advisory referendum to voters to recall Campbell