All language subtitles for The Sheriff (2026).en

[awestruck music]

[luminescent music]

[wind murmurs]

[door clunks]

[alarm buzzes]

[Chuck] Hey, there's
trouble back there.

Hi, Sheriff, how you doing?

Good. How you doing?

[Officer] Good.

Hey, Gower.

Sir, how are you?

This is the ICE processing unit

within the detention center.

Basically, everybody that comes
through our central booking,

they're asked,
"Where were you born,

and what country are
you a citizen of?"

If we get any answers other
than the United States,

we bring them over here to
this unit, where we process 'em

to determine their
immigration status,

but it is a little
bit controversial,

especially during
an election year.

People will of course
push to oppose it.

We've seen some very
heinous crimes here.

How getting rid of these
people is a bad thing,

I don't know.

Maybe I'm missing something,

but getting people that
have committed murder, rape,

these serious charges,
I don't understand how

that can be a bad thing.

Americans are very tired of it.

Americans are being
killed by people

who are in this
country illegally.

Americans have had enough.

As a sheriff who takes
my obligation seriously,

I'm gonna do everything
I can to protect them.

[tender music]

When you have no other argument,

the easiest sword
to draw is the one

you're a racist in your profile.

It's simply not true.

It's so highly publicized
because of the controversy.

Again, if it weren't
an election year,

it wouldn't be an issue,

so we'll see in a few
weeks how this plays out.

You have a sheriff
who has committed

to stand on his program,
to protect the citizens,

and an opponent who says
he's going to get rid of it.

Let's see how it shakes out.

Oh, I think we're gonna win.

The need is greater
now than ever

with the Sheriff's Office

because of the issues.

Well, I don't like to
mention my opponent's name.

There's the asshole.

-Vote for Mr. Karl.
-[child babbles]

If you want me to, I will.

[Interviewer] Whatever
you're comfortable-

Well, I won't. I won't
mention his name.

I'm Karl Bickel,

Democratic candidate for
Frederick County Sheriff.

[virile music]

[text thuds]

In the U.S., we are
unique in the world

in that we have
fiercely independent
local law enforcement.

[text thuds]

[virile music continues]

A sheriff is different
than most police chiefs.

Most police chiefs
are appointed.

A sheriff is
independently elected.

True representative democracy,

the idea that he is
the best among us.

[text thuds]

How you doing. Clarence
Birkhead for sheriff.

A new day for
Durham, that's right.

You get out and vote.

[text thuds]

[Preston] Got a tiger here!

Yeah, I know what that means.

CB!

You see the tension in my
shoulders is what you see.

I would guess that
most Americans don't

necessarily understand
the level of autonomy

that sheriffs have.

[Boy] Are you running
for state senator?

No, sir. I'm the sheriff
running for reelection.

It is a constitutional position.

I think that is so important
for people to realize.

I serve you. I don't serve
another elected official.

Thank you.

That's the most
important piece of it,

your role in the
fabric of this country.

-How's it going?
-Doing fantastic job, man.

[Chuck] Appreciate
it. Thank you.

[virile music continues]

Theoretically,
anybody could run.

There are many places
where there are

no requirements whatsoever

to be a sheriff and be in charge

of all law
enforcement activities

-in a county.
-[crowd cheers]

[text thuds]

[virile music continues]

[text thuds]

Of course, this plays
into all the other drama

that's playing out in
American politics right now.

[Patriots] U.S.A.!

[Protesters] Racists go home!

The issues that are happening
on a national level are

being sort of fought
out at the local level.

[text thuds]

[siren wails faintly]

The current tenor of the
politics across the country has

taken a turn that
we never saw coming.

[crowd cheers]

This is probably the most
important midterm election

that we've had in
a very long time.

It really will shape the
policies for years to come.

[virile music continues]

If you're wearing
uniform and you have

that kind of a badge and
the title of sheriff,

it's very tempting
to sort of act out

as if you were in a old
school Western movie.

The sort of idea of
manifest destiny,

pushing out into the West,

The only person that can tame
this wild land is the sheriff.

[text thuds]

[virile music slows]

[Bickel] You don't need
to do that on Sunday.

Oh, okay. Oh well.

[Karl laughs]

Thanks.

[Woman] Thank you.

Oh, you're welcome.

They charge so much
during the week,

they don't need to on Sunday.

This is a very important
area for Karl this year.

We've been doing a great
job reaching voters

here in the city of Frederick.

We wanna talk about
the opioid crisis.

Karl's experience
across multiple aspects

of law enforcement over 40 years

and the professionalism
that he's going to bring

to the sheriff's department,

but when you're
talking to voters,

reciting a script,
is not compelling.

When you go in and you say
the reason that I'm willing

to come out here on a Sunday
and talk to you about this is

because of this issue, for me,

that's always the
most compelling thing
to say to someone,

so trust yourself about why
this is important for you.

Here is the cards for
Frederick Democrats

who offer free
rides to the polls,

so just good to have 'em.

It's sort of unique
to have a sheriff

as an elected position,

I kind of am uncomfortable
with it, to be honest with you,

especially in the environment
that we're in today.

In our country, everything
is hyperpolarized.

If you're a republican,
you have to stand

on this side of the line,
this imaginary line,

and you have to believe these
things and not these things.

Vice versa with democrats.

We vilify each other
on either side.

I don't want my sheriff to
be on one side of that line.

The change from Chuck
Jenkins to Karl Bickel is

the biggest swing that I can
help make in our local area.

Karl ran against
him four years ago.

We've expanded Karl's
operation this year,

more than fivefold.

I believe we can win.

There's a movement
going on for Karl.

I think we're pissed off,

[laughs] so we're
highly motivated.

Even if you don't know Karl,

you know Chuck Jenkins, you
know, you know his opponent,

and you know we need change now.

[gleeful music]

♪ WFMD, Frederick's
new station ♪

This is Sheriff Chuck
Jenkins reminding you

and asking for your
vote on November 6.

I've provided leadership
with sound policy decisions

in the best interest of public
safety for our citizens.

I'm the only one who will
enforce the immigration laws,

and I stand alone to
keep Frederick County

from becoming a
sanctuary county.

The ICE 287g program has placed

over 1600 criminal
aliens into deportation,

including 105 gang
members to mostly MS-13.

Keep Frederick County safe.
Elect Chuck Jenkins Sheriff.

Authority: Chuck
Jenkins for Sheriff,

Gary Jenkins treasurer.

This is my brother,
Gary, Gary Jenkins.

He's right behind me, two
years younger than I am.

He's the second of five.

He's my campaign treasurer,
has been for 12 years.

I'm sure he's tired of
it. I know he's tired.

But he really does a great
job at managing my money

for the campaigns.

But it's very difficult
being the brother

of a popular sheriff.

I am nobody except
Chuck's brother.

[phone rings]

Sheriff Jenkins.

Who stoled your identity?

[restrained music continues]

I believe this
because I live this.

There's no elected official

closer to the people
than a sheriff.

I truly believe that.

[Man] Who is the sheriff?

I serve at the
pleasure of the people

and I have the
trust of the people.

Hey, Shelly. How are you?

[Shelly] Doing good.

[Chuck] Thanks for having
us. I appreciate that.

-Thank you.
-Well, you know.

[Chuck] I appreciate it.

-We support ya.
-I know ya do.

I'm a law and order guy.
I'm kinda no nonsense.

The bad guys belong in jail.

I wanna protect the good
people that are out there.

-Good to see ya.
-Good to see ya, brother.

People in this
county have seen me

become the sheriff
they want here.

I recently read an article

that serious crime is down
by 10% in Frederick County.

I wanted to do a shout out

to our great sheriff,
Chuck Jenkins.

[Audience] Hey! [applauds] Whoo!

They recognize the problems
that we're dealing with

as a county, as a society.

I call these societal problems.

The heroin/opioid-addiction
problem.

There's always a
conversation about that.

There are conversations
about immigration,

illegal immigration, because
that's a big issue over here.

[restrained music continues]

We have about 185
sworn deputy sheriffs.

Then we have our
corrections bureau,

which is about
another 150 employees,

a tremendous budget of
about $46 million a year.

It's a tremendous
amount of authority.

Everybody's lives depend on
the decisions that you make.

[restrained music continues]

Well, this is
something that really,

to me, has some meaning to it,

but this is an autographed
picture of Russell Crowe

in the movie "Gladiator."

That's my favorite movie
because in my mind,

when you're like an election,

you walk the other guy into
the arena and you kill him.

Good evening. I'm Karl Bickel.

I'm running for Sheriff
of Frederick County.

I just wanted to stop
by and introduce myself.

The research seems to indicate

that the most effective means is

going door to door and
making that personal contact.

Salisbury, did you go there?

No, my daughter did a while ago.

My daughter-in-law
went there as well.

-Oh, did she?
-Yes.

Said something about Salisbury.

That might be all she remembers,

but if she remembered something,

unfortunately, that
probably means more

than anything having
to do with policies.

Ask for your vote and see if
you have any questions of me.

You gotta have that street cred.

Okay, thank you very much.

And I have that.

I was only 22 years old

when I was a detective working

in the inner city in Washington.

Got to do a lotta things in
a real short period of time,

but just the fact that
you came to the door,

a lotta times, will sway people.

The other candidate
doesn't do this,

which works to my favor.

He's good at the job he's doing.

I don't like him getting
into border stuff.

It just doesn't
ring right to me.

You should worry about
Frederick and not the-

Well, that's what
he's getting paid for,

to look after Frederick.

He can be an affable
fella at times,

but as far as running
the Sheriff's Office,

I think he's been
a dismal failure

attempting to manage through
fear and intimidation,

his good-old-boy favoritism
when it comes to promotions,

when it comes to assignments,
when it comes to hiring.

Quite frankly, I've been
enjoying retirement.

If we had a good sheriff, I
wouldn't be running for office.

-[reserved music]
-[dogs bark]

He was at one point
with this agency.

I'm going back 24, 25 years ago.

Now, I don't know how
he can sell himself

to be the chief law enforcement
officer in the county

when you haven't been in
the game for 24, 25 years.

It just doesn't work.

You can't be out of this
game for six months.

This is the third time
he's run against me.

He writes a lot, writes
a lot on the blogs,

faults me for lack of
leadership, lack of education,

[reserved music continues]

but people know what
to expect from me.

They know what I believe
in. That resonates.

I think people trust
me because of it.

That's why I'm behind this desk.

The sheriff would accuse me
of attacking him personally,

but I've been very
careful only to talk

about issues and policy.

In fact, when he's done that,

I've asked him to
bring to my attention

anywhere that I have
attacked him personally,

and I'll publicly apologize.

I never hear back.

This is a Republican
Sheriff Chuck Jenkins asking

for your vote on November 6th.

I've provided leadership
with sound policy decisions

in the best interest
of public safety.

In the first six
months of this year,

more than 30 Frederick
County residents have died

of opioid overdoses.

No parent should have
to bury their child

because the sheriff doesn't
take this epidemic seriously.

[reserved music continues]

Well, the argument for a
sheriff is it's someone

who is chosen by the community,
who is of the community,

so if you have a conservative
sheriff, in theory,

it's reflecting voters
who are conservative.

If you have a liberal
sheriff, you know, vice versa,

but once a sheriff's in,
you're kinda stuck with him.

In most states, sheriffs are
elected to four-year terms.

There are very few places where
sheriffs have term limits.

We have really long
incumbency rates.

The average sheriff
serves for 18 years,

so they're reelected
over and over again.

That gives them a
sort of permanence.

they just sorta become
an institution in
and of themselves.

Move. You need to move.

Well, fuck you, KKK bitch.

Law enforcement, at its core
is incredibly political.

[crowd roars]

[Man] Get that
fucking... [grunts]

[Mirya] If we think
about politics

as the exercise of power,

-Back up.
-Back up!

law enforcement
is to some extent

the ultimate
exercise of politics.

Well, me personally, I'm just
here to support free speech

and the unpopular ideas that
are being expressed today,

but "Speak English Please!"
is a reference to the idea

that English should be
America's national language.

Politics in the U.S.
at the moment is

the closest thing to
like sports affiliation

I've ever seen, right.

So you pick a side you
know. Which team are you on?

First, God gives us Jesus,

and now God gives
us Donald Trump.

Such a racist.

[Woman With Phone] Why?
How do you know I'm racist?

[Mike] It sorta
lends itself to do

what politicians typically do.

There's babies in cages!

[Mike] Your goal
is to get elected.

In order to get elected, you
need to raise a lotta money,

make a lotta people happy.

I order you to the
concentration camps.

Sometimes, the popular decisions

are not the best decisions.

[music becomes lively]

Sheriffs in North Carolina
are really interesting

because some of the
national issues are

particularly affecting
elections around sheriffs.

[protesters chant]

So, if we think about
Durham, North Carolina,

[Protesters] Move!

[Mirya] Durham is a
historically black city

[Protester] Who do you work for?

and has never had
a black sheriff.

♪ No cops, no KKK, no fascist ♪

There have been
some major conflicts

about immigration issues,
immigration enforcement,

police violence, jails, and
how the jails are being run,

so in the spring, there
was a Democratic primary,

and this is really the
only election that matters

because there are very
few republicans in Durham.

There will be a new district
attorney and sheriff

in Durham County.

Here's a look at those results
for the Democratic primary.

[Anchorwoman] Clarence
Birkhead is set to take over

the Durham County Sheriff's
Office and would make history

as the first African American
to hold the position.

I am your new sheriff!

[supporters cheers]

[lulling music continues]

It's good to be here.

And it's certainly good to be
here as your sheriff-elect.

It's been a long road,

but we have worked
really hard together

to get where we are today.

Now, having won the primary,

the general election
is academic,

but you still need
to vote for me

'cause I can't do this alone.

This is not "The
Clarence Birkhead Show."

I recognize, as I hope you do,

that this is much
larger than me.

Okay, and it's not
about me, so what I need

from the community is
like this right here.

Number one, we should
fill this room.

We have an opportunity
to have a conversation

with the first black sheriff.

I've been where you're sitting.

When things go bad,
and things will happen,

there will be other incidents,
there will be another death

in the jail, but I
can promise you this,

meet me at the table so we
can talk about what happened.

I can explain to you how
we're going to rectify it.

The current outgoing
administration

in the Sheriff's Office
has pretty much left

the reputation of
the Sheriff's Office

in a not-so-favorable
light right now.

I'm trying to be kind.

I know these listening
sessions are great.

And you're right. We should
have filled the room.

What do you see
your office doing

to reach these young
people and let them know

you don't have to fear us

because we have
the deputy badge on

and you see the
car and tense up,

you won't have to do that under
the Birkhead administration?

Oh, I almost quoted T.I., so
I'm not gonna to quote T.I.,

but I have to let them know
that I'm accessible, number one.

If you remember, TEA,

you remember, transparency,
engagement, and accountability,

the only way I can reach
those young people,

those young folks, is to engage
with them where they are.

[marchlike music]

Got the committee
slate. Come on.

We gotta get out
and vote, all right.

Thank you.

How you doing?

That's the committee slate.
Vote Birkhead for sheriff.

Okay.

I appreciate just support.

Tell all ya friends, okay?

All right, get out
and vote, okay.

Get out and vote.
All right, thank you.

[Clarence Voiceover] This
is a great community,

but it's been troubled:
drugs, violence.

You got me?

[Clarence Voiceover] Law
enforcement is not always seen

as a friend.

On a national level, law
enforcement's taken a hit,

made some mistakes, had some
very tragic incidents occur.

-All right, how you doing?
-Very good, I appreciate it.

Doing well. Thank you, sir.

Appreciate it. Thank you.

[poignant music]

I wanna win, and
I wanna win big.

That momentum would just carry
over to my first 100 days,

first year, and keep everybody
excited about the change.

[poignant music continues]

For whatever reason, that
office has been locked up.

We African Americans
have not been able

to break that glass
ceiling, so to speak,

but I think now, there's
such a wave of change

across the state, across the
country that now's the time.

[poignant music continues]

When you're talking about
criminal justice issues

and some of the ills of the
criminal justice system,

who can better relate then
an African American man.

Good morning.

[Woman] We gonna win!

Yes, we gonna win! Say it again.

[Woman] We gonna win!

[Clarence] We gonna
win! All right.

[dog barks]

[Hairdresser] You work a taxi?

[Client] Yep.

I'm really getting
down to the wire

'cause I'm trying to save
what I need for poles.

[Woman] Are you putting
your signs up on every pole?

Well I've already got
people on my team...

That's all set for me.

[Woman] Okay.

I'm taken care of, so...

I'm going down to Urbana.
I'm going to Monrovia.

Then I'm gonna head
West, go to Middletown.

They stole all my
signs outta Middletown.

Fountaindale North and South
and Main Street were all hit.

[Woman] Did you tell 'em that
we have signs here for you,

they don't have to take-

Right, come and get their own.
Don't take somebody else's.

Yeah, I hardly think it's that.

See now, you pull in here,

and what do ya see
ahead of you there?

You're gonna be looking
for a parking place.

You see a big area there
where there's nothing.

That's our spot.

I'm not going to be identified

by winning or losing
a sheriff's race.

You know, I'm who I am.

If I win a sheriff's
race, that's wonderful,

but I'll feel badly if we
don't have an opportunity

to bring about the kinda
change that's needed,

because there are
so many folks now

that are so hopeful,

both in the community

and in the Sheriff's
Office itself.

I'll feel as though
I've let them down

because there's a lot of
energy that's going into this.

A lotta people have
their hopes up,

but there's somebody going
around pulling up signs.

That could explain why
none of ours were here.

[Woman] Who would be
pulling up signs though?

Oh, the opposition,
especially up here.

This is Jenkins' territory.

[sensitive music continues]

[Man] Keep it going!
[indistinct] and that's it.

[Woman] Come on. Let's go!

[boy yelps]

[Man] Derrick, you on that side.

All right, they-

[Woman] Everybody vote
for Chuck Jenkins.

All right, so I got
everybody's vote here, right?

-Yes.
-Yeah.

-There you go.
-Where am I supposed to...

Well, keep your eye
on this next one.

I can't afford to keep
bringing big signs up.

I know. We will.

It's just people
like that out here.

[Chuck] I know.

I think it's people
that don't like you.

Probably like these
illegal immigrants.

There's a lot likes you.

They want you being
sheriff again.

You got that right,
and I'm one off 'em.

Well, thank you.
Appreciate that.

Let me give you a bumper
sticker. Here, yeah.

[Woman] I want one too.

You want one too?

You got it. No problem.

[Emily] You have a bumper!

-There you go.
-You want one, Emily?

[Karl] I guess my objective
is to get rid of Chuck.

There you go. All right.

It's not him.

Well, it is him because
it's his policies.

And, uh

Yeah, I guess it is
about getting rid of him

because if he were
doing a good job,

I wouldn't be
running for sheriff.

I just want this
election to be over.

Its, um

I do and I don't. I
enjoy parts of it.

It's a lota work.

I don't mind the work, but

Its the... you know

you're waiting for the results.

You're waiting for election day.

You don't know
how it's gonna go.

You're apprehensive.
You're nervous.

This is my livelihood.
This is my career.

Everything's on the line.

[sensitive music continues]

[bird twitters]

People respect law and order,

and they love our
law enforcement,

and I think we're
gonna have much more

of a red wave than what
you're going to see

as a phony blue wave.

Blue wave means crime. It
means open borders, not good.

I'm with some of the great
law enforcement people.

A lot of 'em are
friends of mine.

They've been fantastic
people, fantastic.

They know what we're up against.

We're up against people
that want to allow

criminals into our society.

I appreciate our president
leading by example

and coming down here.

Under the Obama administration

and under his
Department of Justice,

when something
would've occurred,

an officer may
have shot someone,

the President and the
Department of Justice seemed

to always weigh in before
the facts were made clear.

It would always be
against law enforcement.

There was never much
pro-law enforcement.

A lot of times you're scorned,

and you're looked
at by the media,

because the media's
very dishonest,

much of it, in this country,
very very dishonest.

It seemed to me that when
Donald Trump became president,

he made it very clear
running for president

that he was a law and order guy.

He likes sheriffs. He
likes police chiefs.

He likes law
enforcement in general.

I just think that the
overwhelming feeling is

that he has our back.

It's not surprising for any
of the sheriffs who are here

that shortly after you took
office, people started saying,

"There's a new sheriff in town."

[attendee whistles]

Oh yes. Trump loves
him some sheriffs.

Trump stands next to a sheriff,
and what that telegraphs,

without anyone saying a word,

is law and order,
strength, masculinity.

It's just so easy to endorse him

because everything I believe in,

he's doing, and
he's going to do it.

In the years leading
up to Trump's election,

sheriffs were extremely visible.

I mean, that's where you get
Joe Arpaio and David Clarke.

They were revered
among conservatives

as people who were at the
forefront of pushing back

against what they saw
as the tyranny of Obama.

I think once Trump was elected,

they were part of the in-crowd.

Took me 75 years to find a hero.

It's President Trump.

We're born on the same
day, June 14, flag day.

I said, "You're gonna
be our next president.

There's a silent
majority out there.

That's why you're gonna win."

I was right.

Well, this is my conference room

in the office that I picked up.

"Picked up," I own the place.

I kept some mementos
that were in my office,

in the Sheriff's Office.

You know what?

The media never
gives me a break,

but I don't work for them.

I work for you.

[Mirya] Joe Arpaio was

a longterm serving
sheriff of Arizona.

He was infamous for arresting

so many people that he ran
out of space in his jail

and starting tent cities
out in the desert.

There will always be room
because I have the tent.

That shines 24 hours a day.

[Mirya] Made the inmates
wear pink uniforms

because he wanted
to humiliate them.

Some of 'em didn't like it.

Became famous around the world.

If you committed a
crime, you do the time,

a punitive view of law
enforcement policy making.

I put the men on a chain gang.

Then, since I'm a
equal opportunity guy,

I put the women on a chain gang.

No one's ever put women on
a chain gang, but why not?

Women are involved
in everything, you
know, flying planes.

Why can't they be
on a chain gang?

[virile music continues]

I usually go on 14 parades
every year, 2, 300,000 people.

I don't have to take polls.

I could just see how many
people are screaming at me

or giving me the
finger or cheering.

Do the people in this
room like Sheriff Joe?

[Audience] Yeah!

Several people
died in his jails,

so there were a variety
of human rights concerns

about his tenure.

Was sheriff Joe convicted
for doing his job?

[Audience] Yeah.

[Mirya] Eventually,
he was arrested.

This is a pardon
that he gave me.

Yet I'm the bad guy.
I'm the worst guy.

Every day, they call me
a racist, which is okay.

Now they call everybody a
racist, including the president.

Everybody's a racist now, so
that's okay. Join the club.

I like to wear this hat,
boots, and everything else

'cause it pisses off the left.

I've heard, "It
was controversial."

I say, "Well, to who?"

Seal the damn border.

I always ask when someone says.

I go, "Oh, who am I
controversial to?"

Build the damn wall.

People who hate
me? Of course I am.

After a while, you realize
you're gonna have to become

a political animal

as a sheriff 'cause
you're elected,

so you gotta pay
attention to the politics.

Donald Trump is the steadfast
leader our nation needs.

I ended up
supporting, endorsing,

and campaigning for Donald Trump

to be the 45th president
of the United States

because of his stance
on law and order.

We had a chance to
elect a guy who made it

a major plank in his platform.

There isn't one
thing that he's done,

that he didn't say
he was gonna do.

It's called leadership.

He told us before we elected
him what he was going to do.

I think people who don't
like him, they're shocked

'cause they say, "We've never
seen politicians do that.

They just say that
to get elected."

[thoughtful music]

I think in the law
enforcement field,

there's a big temptation
to get yourself

on the news at night.

The more outrageous
your statements,

the more likely you are to
be part of that coverage.

[audience cheers and applauds]

It's a challenge
because what see on TV,

if it's going on in Milwaukee,

or if it's going on in Arizona,

people kinda lump all people
with a badge together.

You said you have our back.

The sheriffs across
this nation have yours.

God bless you. Thank
you, Mr. President.

So on the one hand, you wanna
be popular and get elected.

On the other hand, you're
supposed to be enforcing the law

without bias, fairly.

Sometimes, creates a dilemma.

I'm the sheriff of your home

of Camp David, Frederick County.

We suffer the same
problems there.

I'm convinced, without what
you're doing here today,

every county becomes
a border county.

-Thank you, Mr. President.
-Thank you, Sheriff.

[thoughtful music continues]

He doesn't realize those
people down there laugh at him.

And not just Trump.
It's not just Trump.

The president will put
on a dog and pony show.

Other ranking
government officials,

they put on a dog and pony show

when they wanna try to
make a political point.

They bring in these police
people from around the country.

That'll come in for
a photo opportunity.

That's all that really is.

There are some that
point out the fact

that what the hell's
he doing down there

when he should be up here

doing what our county
sheriff should be doing?

In the United States, there
is a deep divide right now.

That certainly
comes from the top.

Our current president
has a different tone,

a different way of
looking at politics.

It is frustrating.

Those are not the values
of most Americans.

It's certainly not the values
of us who live in Durham.

With the recent
incidents in Pittsburgh,

the unfortunate pipe bombs
that have been mailed

over the past couple of weeks,

there's a direct correlation
between those actions

and the rhetoric that's coming

out of our national politics.

Unfortunately, I think this
is the tip of the iceberg.

[Announcer] From the 9:30 WFMD,

Roy Rogers Restaurant
News Center.

[Announcer] This is "WFMD News."

[Anchorwoman] Early voting
is starting in Maryland.

The state has 79
early-voting centers,

and they open at 10
o'clock this morning,

and they will be
open until 8:00 p.m.

Early voting runs
through next Thursday.

There is at least-

Here, we're doing early
voting in Frederick County.

Today's the first day.

We have eight days where
folks can come in and vote.

We've seen presidential-level
interest in absentee ballots.

Certainly today, at early
voting, we're seeing,

in all four of our
locations, a higher turnout

than we would typically see.

I think there's a lot
of interest this year

in participating in the process

simply because of
the current climate

in the political
world in Maryland

and in the United
States as a whole.

I think that drives a
lot of intense activity

in both campaigns and
in voter interest.

I think that's a good thing.

More people
participate, I feel like

the better off we can be.

[Karl giggles]

[Clerk] How are you, sir?

[Karl] Very good, thanks.
How are you today?

[Clerk] I'm good.

[Karl Voiceover] It's still
a crapshoot to some extent.

Those that have paid attention,

those that are paying attention

and comparing the two
candidates, we won that.

That's easy, but it's the folks

that don't pay close attention.

[Clerk] Need your ballot, sir.

[Karl] Yeah, you
got that one right.

You coming to vote today, ma'am?

[Voter] Yes, sir.

How you doing? Let me
introduce myself to ya.

I'm Clarence Birkhead.

-Nice to meet you.
-Hopefully, be

your next sheriff,
having won the primary.

Yes, you have my vote.
Thank you very much.

-Thank you so very much.
-Yes, it's a new leaf.

A new day for Durham.

Thank you. "A new day for
Durham," that's right, yeah.

[woman laughs]

Hey. Thank y'all for
coming out to vote.

You're welcome.

I like that outfit.

-Thank you!
-That's your voting outfit?

And my voting sticker.

And your voting outfit!

[Preston] Get that to Bob.

He's gonna push it out to
his group, and that's Sunday,

so by the time we
get to Tuesday...

When's the last day
of voting? Saturday?

[Preston] Saturday,
yeah. Saturday is it.

I gotta go vote.

[Preston] I do too. I'ma
grab the family and go.

Go into central.

-Yeah.
-Hey, I gotta go vote.

[Preston] Grace, I found it.

Grace Marsh.

Okay.

All the employees of the
office of the sheriff works

at the pleasure of the sheriff.

As we get in there, a lot of
the names will be changing.

I remember when I worked
in a sheriff's office

as a young deputy.

You never knew exactly
whether or not you had a job

after the new guy took the oath,

so for all those employees,

it could be a bit
tense right now.

One thing Clarence will
always let you know,

he's never fired anyone.

He's never fired anyone. They
may have fired themselves.

Yeah, he's retired.

My position actually
doesn't exist on this chart,

but it would be the
sheriff, and then I would be

an offshoot, right
here, of the sheriff.

Then everything else would
flow, flow downward. Yes.

I've prepared for it over time.

There's a saying,
"If you ever come

face to face with
destiny, don't be late,"

so hopefully, this is my
calling and my destiny.

[crowd murmurs]

[unruly music]

[Vendor] And you, ma'am.

[Customer] Can I get
the same, please.

[unruly music continues]

-Hey, Karl.
-Hey. How's it going?

Good to see ya.

-Good. You too.
-How've you been?

I'm doing good.

We waiting. We ready.

I can't wait for this
change, this switch.

Hey, Billy.

How y'all doing?

Hey. How's it going?

-Good to see ya.
-All right. Good.

Hey, good.

-How ya been?
-There he is!

-Good to see ya.
-How you doing?

So far, so good.

Got it nailed down?

You got Jenkins on
the run or what?

He's sorta on the
run, but you know,

it's not nailed
down until November.

[unruly music]

I don't think this is somewhere

where they're gonna see
the current sheriff.

This is not a crowd he
would feel comfortable in,

which is a shame.

That's one of the reasons,
one of the many reasons,

we need a new sheriff.

[Interviewer] Why do you think

he would feel uncomfortable?

Because there's certain
people he just doesn't like.

There are certain groups
he just doesn't like.

He's been in a rural
community all of his life.

Education, he really hasn't
been exposed to very much

when it comes to education.

I think all those
things come to play.

That's all part of what
makes all of us who we are.

What would y'all like to
drink. [indistinct] get that.

Fifty-Fifty.

Fifty-Fifty.

Bottle of water.

-Bottle of water.
-I'd like to trade this in

for unsweetened.

It's actually sweetened.

Oh, I'm sorry.

That's all right, sweetie.

Had a good night down
Urbana Saturday night.

They had their gun raffle.

I am seated down there,
but I'll tell you what.

I took a stack of
signs down with me

and just put them in
that vestibule there.

After I gave 'em a little
spiel, when everybody left,

the signs were gone.

Hmm, there you go.

[Bald Man] Your opposition
pick 'em up and put 'em out.

-Probably.
-We can find 'em.

[Interviewer] Do you
think this is somewhere

your opponent would visit?

Oh hell no.

[table laughs]

[Man In Red] They
wouldn't let him in here.

Honestly, he wouldn't
walk through this door.

He really wouldn't.

He would not fit in an
environment like this.

He would be as out of place

as a bottle of
champagne on that bar.

I just don't see him fitting in

with much of anybody
in this county.

He's an academic.

He [indistinct] to
elitist attitude.

"You're all down
here. I'm up here.

I know more than any of you

'cause I read a lot of books,"

but the actual
person on the street

is the guy that
I'm gonna vote for.

He's the people sheriff.

Which is good. Communication.

Communicating with the
community all the time.

We're facing some significant
immigration and crime issues

in Frederick County.

It's ugly, so we need
a strong sheriff.

President Trump,
thank you for agreeing

to stop illegal immigration
and restore the rule of law.

We're America's sheriffs,
and we see firsthand...

The cost and tragic consequences
of illegal immigration.

By securing our borders and
enforcing immigration laws...

We can make America safe again.

That's part of making
America great again.

Mr. President, we know
we can count on you.

And you can count on
America's sheriffs.

[hushed music]

No nation can allow
itself to be overwhelmed

by uncontrolled masses of
people rushing their border.

We have no choice.
We have no choice.

We will defend our borders.
We will defend our country.

We will never surrender
our nation to the forces

of anarchy and chaos and crime.

[hushed music continues]

One by one, we are
finding the gang members,

the drug dealers,
and the criminals who
pray on our people.

We are throwing them
outta the country,

[audience cheers]

and we are building a wall
on the southern border,

which is absolutely necessary.

-Build a wall!
-[music becomes lively]

This immigration
issue is really only

about 10 years
old at the moment.

It certainly predates
the Trump phenomenon.

This is a product of
the Bush administration

and the Obama administration
and the Trump administration.

They're trying to pass off
immigration enforcement

to local law enforcement.

Sheriffs on the U.S.-Mexico
border were pleading

with the Federal Government
to provide more services,

provide more resources,
provide more support.

Under former President Bush,
there was an initiative

to allow local police
departments to, in effect,

become an extension of
the immigration police.

[door knocks]

287g is a policy

that the Federal Government
is going to train them

in how to be embedded
pseudo-ICE agents.

[music becomes cheery]

From the point of view of a
sheriff, it's someone saying

like, "If you sign up, we'll
give you a lot of resources,

you can get on the
news as helping

to round-up all
these illegal aliens,

and you play into
the xenophobic fears

of certainly a fair
number of Americans.

You're gonna get a
lot of publicity.

That's good if
you're a politician."

It affects the sheriffs probably
more when they run a jail

because the immigration
authorities want local jails

to notify them if they book
somebody that may be illegal,

so some sheriffs have
taken the position

that they're not
gonna notify ICE,

so there is widespread
disagreement on this issue.

Because of this incentive
for local law enforcement

to participate, because it
financially makes sense,

this has become this major
issue in these elections.

[Anchorwoman] Tensions
were high on Tuesday night

for the annual immigration
287g committee meeting.

[Protester] Law and order!

[Anchorwoman] Residents
spoke in favor

and against the program
that has been in place

for the last 10 years.

I believe that we have
a real serious problem

in this country, and it's a fact

that we don't enforce our laws.

[Woman] I don't think
he's saying [indistinct].

There's a difference
between legal and illegal.

I came here as an immigrant.

I was an immigrant alien
until I became a citizen.

I made my citizenship
when I was 18.

My dad didn't do it for me.

He said, "You decide
if you wanna be German

or if you wanna be American."

At 18, I became a naturalized
citizen, and I'm proud of it.

[Chuck] Thank you.

Of all detainers
issued under 287g,

88% were for misdemeanors,
not felonies,

not for murder, not
for any of that.

They were for
traffic violations.

Imagine if it was your family,

who you had to worry about
every time they went out

for a drive or
something like that.

I do not believe for one minute

there's any law enforcement
officer in this county,

that's out on the street
asking any questions about

-immigration status.
-Your denial is denying

the stories of real
people in the community.

You know what, I've
yet to receive a call,

a complaint at any level.

If no complaints
have been filed,

it could be due to a
culture of intimidation

or perhaps those who
could be complaintants

are lacking the
resources to do so.

[audience cheers and applauds]

Jenkins' whole
immigration standpoint,

he knows his base,

I don't think he is doing
it for a political grab.

I think he genuinely
believes what he's saying,

which is slightly scary.

Monday marked day one of
settlement negotiations

between a woman
from El Salvador,

who won her civil rights
suit, and the county

that was ruled to have
wrongfully arrested her.

[Anchorman] A judge
ruled last week

that the county is
liable for the policy

that permitted sheriffs'
deputies to detain
people suspected

of violating immigration law,

and Roxana Orellana
Santos can seek damages.

We recently had a settlement
on the Santos case

where a woman got picked up

when she was eating
outside of her work.

She was eating a sandwich
and the deputies came

and picked her up.

That was not something
they were supposed to do.

What they got back over a
course of a few minutes was

basically a hit for
an open warrant.

It was a deportation warrant,
so as they should have done,

as any police agency
would have done,

they took her into custody.

Now we've been found liable.

I've been found liable
for illegal detention.

In fact, we violated her rights

by the fact that we seized her

and we held her and ICE came in.

Then consequently, she was
held for a number of weeks,

maybe into a month or more.

I disagree that we're
liable because to me,

if that was a wrongful decision,

the liability ought
to fall back to ICE.

ICE should be standing up
beside me and standing up for me

to help fight this.

They haven't. That's what
it gets disappointing to me.

I stand up and fight
the fight for them.

There's no reciprocation.

It was described
to you, probably,

by the incumbent sheriff
as a public safety issue

when in fact the available
research indicates

that in immigrant
communities, crime is less.

There's no evidence
at all that indicates

that the two 287g program
makes a community safer.

The felons are gonna get
caught no matter what.

287g is catching people who've
committed very minor crimes

that U.S. citizens
commit all the time

and then putting them into
process to deport them.

People really don't
understand that.

They think that really
bad guys are gonna get out

if we don't have 287g.

That's not the way it works.

I guess the overall economy

and how it's affected Americans,

especially maybe the lower
socioeconomic classes,

maybe the elderly population,
the unemployed veterans,

the unemployed in general, how
we can't take care of our own

in the United States.

Our systems are taxed,
our social services,

our healthcare, our education.

Very honestly, we
can't keep paying

for everybody else in the world.

People are tired of that.

Here's an example right here.

Here's probably a
homeless person,

who's panhandling,
which is illegal.

He's probably a veteran.

What Americans are really
getting angry at is the fact

that we will take better care

of people in this country
illegally than we will of him.

I think it's wrong,

but here's the sad part.

If I were by myself,
I'd pull over,

and I'd run him off
that intersection

because what he's
doing's illegal.

[gloomy dance music]

Look how many people are here,

but Frederick has not always
been a very tolerant community

when it comes to anybody
that's different.

As you can look around
and see, that is changing.

That's improving.

There's a lot more
going on in Frederick.

The sheriff's race is
sort of an indicator

of what's really
happening in Frederick.

[wistful music]

Frederick, Maryland,
for a long time,

and still for some people,
was called Fredneck,

like redneck and Frederick
combined together.

This was a county that had a
significant presence of KKK.

The city has fundamentally
overcome that

and has a lot of
diversity, but when you get

out into the county, that
legacy is still there.

The presence of a number of
conservative-right people

in the county is an
indicator of that legacy.

The sheriff's race is
a huge symbol of that.

Now, I'm not saying
anybody is or isn't racist,

but it's this tradition
that has to be overcome

for Frederick the county
to be as welcoming

as the city became.

[wistful music continues]

Thank you very much.
I appreciate it very-

There's a lot of
symbolism to these races

that aren't about
the specific people,

but are about communicating,

specifically to
the new residents,

that you are welcome here

as opposed to what the hell
were you thinking moving here?

[wistful music continues]

[Clarence] Good
afternoon, everyone.

[Attendees] Good afternoon.

Okay so,

I've been asked to briefly
tell you what the sheriff does.

The sheriff is the top
law-enforcement official

and the top elected
official in the county.

[translator speaks
in foreign language]

Specifically, as it relates
to our immigrant community,

and I actually made
this pledge in 2006

and have not changed my stance
that under my leadership,

under my authority
as the new sheriff,

we will not cooperate
with ICE detainers.

[Audience] [applauds] Whoo!

[translator speaks
in foreign language]

A lot of people have
been deported from Durham

because the collaboration
that it says right now

between the sheriff
and immigration.

[Clarence] Members
of the community.

[Ivan] The less we have contact

with the police, we feel safer.

Understand where
your issues are.

We had to find a way
to support this guy

who seems different,
so we recruited a lot

of voters, first time voters.

They were like, "We don't
vote. Nothing is gonna change.

This fucking
president, whatever."

I'm like, "Yeah, but locally,
we can do a lotta of stuff."

So it was kinda hard
to convince them

that there's still hope.

[Audience] Whoo! [applauds]

[Ivan speaks in
foreign language]

[hopeful music]

[Ashley] The complexion of
the country is changing.

That's gonna make
some people nervous.

Wave them flags!
You know what it is.

The face of that
changing complexion are

our immigrant communities.

As we are here to defend
our Western culture,

society, and civilization

we are ready to fight,
bleed, and die for this shit.

What don't you understand
about illegal in illegal alien?

That's what people
say, that kinda stuff.

The West is the best.

There's no federal law

that describes what's a
illegal alien or a legal alien.

There's people here in
status, not in status.

Some have documentation.
They entered legally.

It's expired, or it's changed.

Our immigration laws make
this problem more difficult.

[protesters sing in
foreign language]

The United States relies
on undocumented immigrants

to do a lot of
work, particularly

in the agriculture industry.

There has to be a balance
there, where there's a way

to accommodate the need
for that labor force,

but also to be respectful
of the immigrants

who have followed all the
processes and procedures

to gain their citizenship.

[hopeful music continues]

Being effective at maintaining
public safety requires

that law enforcement have
a trusting relationship

with the community.

If members of the community
are afraid of law enforcement,

that trust and cooperation
doesn't happen.

[woman speaks in
foreign language]

[Translator] We have the power.

People must understand
the power resides

in the people, not
with politicians.

[audience cheers]

[music becomes enthused]

We have a very specific idea

about what immigration
enforcement looks like

in the United States, and
it is very Latino focused.

[man speaks in foreign language]

Because of that, it
makes sense to me

that we're seeing these
black sheriffs be elected

in places that are concerned
about racial policy

in the office of the
sheriff, because voters think

that these black sheriffs
are gonna be able

to do a better job thinking
about comprehensive

and compassionate
immigration policy making.

[Audience] [speaks in
foreign language], whoo!

[music continues calmly]

Good evening, everyone.

[translator speaks
in foreign language]

[man speaks in foreign language]

It's really good to be here and
support you, stand with you.

Wanna let you know that the
weather would not deter us.

The national policies
will not deter us.

We will stand together. We'll
be a community together.

I want you to know that
you have an advocate in me

as becoming your next sheriff.

And I will be here to listen
with you, stand with you,

and fight for you, and
keep our families together.

[Audience] Whoo!

[cheerful music]

We have a significant immigrant
population here in Durham.

It's a rich vibrant community.

We want them to feel welcome
and included in everything,

but it is politics of fear.

[cheerful music continues]

At the highest level, we hear
terms used such as invasion,

and we've heard that
at the local level,

that illegals are taking
over our community,

but I choose not
to believe that.

[whistle blares]

[Audience Member] Whoo!

It's no big deal to me,
but once you break the law,

now you've got my attention.

[man speaks in foreign language]

[primal music]

I took an oath and
obligation, okay.

I swore an oath
to uphold the laws

in the constitution
of the United States

and the state of Maryland,

so I believe, this is my belief,

that enforcing the immigration
laws is a part of that.

I choose to do it. I choose
to uphold that oath I took.

I don't look at
myself as a racist.

I look at myself as
enforcing the law.

This is a public safety issue,

and you can see that most
through the flow of heroin,

the flow of human beings and
heroin, across that border,

so as much as we do
in law enforcement,

that supply just keeps
coming into this country.

It's just gonna repeat itself.

It's gonna be a
continuing problem.

I answer to 240,000 bosses
out there every day.

They look for answers. I think
they look for leadership.

This is how I'm
gonna frame this.

It's awfully hard for a person

that doesn't know you to walk
up in Lowe's hardware store,

in the grocery
store, at a ball game

and tell you...

They'll ask you, "Aren't
you sheriff Jenkins."

I'll say, "Yes,
ma'am," "Yes, sir."

"Sir, I think you're
doing a heck of a job.

You're doing the right thing.
Keep doing what you're doing."

It happens virtually
every day, so I feel good.

Do I feel confident?

Maybe confident
is the right word.

I think I've got
another election left.

I hope I'm smart enough to
know when it's time to roll.

The benefit of having
an elected sheriff is

you have a person
who is independent

and directly accountable
to the people.

If you have a person
who's a sheriff

who is genuinely trying
to improve public safety

and work with other disciplines
to make the community safe,

having the freedom of that
independence is really valuable,

but it's like so
many things in life.

You give somebody
power and authority,

and that can be used
for good or bad.

Courthouse and wait.

This courthouse does not
belongs to Sheriff Clark.

This courthouse belongs to
the people of Dallas County,

and these are other
people that Dallas County,

and they have come to register,

and you know this within your
own heart, Sheriff Clark.

You are not as evil
a man as you act.

You know in your
heart what is right.

When we think about
that mythology

of what a sheriff looks like,

the sort of big man with
the badge and the gun,

immediately, what comes
to mind is a white man.

And we will register to vote

because as citizens of
these united states,

we have the right to do it.

Reinforced by people
like John Wayne

and spaghetti Westerns and
these Western classics,

all of this is sort
of encapsulated

into what the sheriff
is and who he is.

At the same time though,
there's a parallel track

that's happening that
the sheriffs are playing

a pretty major role
in enforcing Jim Crow

in the American South.

You can turn your back on me,

but you cannot turn your back
upon the idea of justice.

You can turn your back now,
and you can keep the club

in your hand, but you
cannot beat down justice.

-[punch thuds]
-[woman screams]

[despairing music continues]

[Cordy] Are you
a bunch of thugs?

You don't have to do it.

No, you don't have to beat us.

[Officer] Well,
get out [obscured].

[Cordy] You don't have
to beat us. Arrest us.

[Jim] Get that [indistinct].

[Cordy] Arrest us if we're
wrong. Don't beat us.

I think that was a
pretty significant shift

in law enforcement because
law enforcement's role

in the community was really
maintaining the status quo.

This is cops responding to
what their political leaders

and their agency leaders are

-telling them to do.
-What was that for?

[Cordy] If we're
wrong, arrest us.

[despairing music continues]

We're wrong, arrest-

All of a sudden the
police have this conflict

because now they have
the supreme court saying,

"Hey, you need to protect
the constitutional rights

of these marginalized
people too"

when the majority of
the community said,

"No, we just wanna
maintain the order.

We wanna keep things the
way they've always been."

So now the cops
are in the middle

of a political and
a social conflict.

-Go on, now.
-You beat me in the side

and then hide your blow.

Well, go on.

No, I don't want you to leave.

We have come to
register to vote.

[despairing music continues]

You beat us with [indistinct]
and [indistinct].

What kind of people are you?

[Mike] There's a
temptation to use

the extraordinary
powers they have

against outsiders,
people who are different.

That could be African-Americans.
It could be immigrants.

[Jim] Have you
been in this court?

[Cordy] The vote belongs
to all the citizens.

So sheriffs has
caught up the halfway

between this old-school
traditional model

and modern policing.

Probably not all of them are
gonna survive the transition.

[despairing music continues]

[man speaks faintly]

In current time, you
wouldn't see officers

at any polling places

because of past
discrimination practices

as far as sheriff deputies
being at polling sites

in which it would
actually discourage

specifically
minority populations

from coming out to the polls.

It was a tactic that was used

probably mostly in the South.

As you see, there's a
couple of offices here.

There was evidently
an online threat made

by a law student here
at the university,

so the university has
deployed some security here,

just as a precaution.

She made some racially
disparaging comments

as well as an endorsement
to the attempted murder

of the Clintons, the Obamas
with respect to the pipe bombs.

We, the students, felt
very strongly about that.

We fear for our public safety,

considering her
access to weapons.

[Reporter] Do you
all feel safe here?

No.

I, particularly
as a white woman,

feel that it's my
obligation to stand up

against the absolutely
disturbing conduct

that we have seen by a classmate

who has been in our
presence for three years,

so no, I don't feel safe.

I don't know what
she's capable of.

I would like to see her
expelled immediately.

Will you all be at the town
hall meeting this afternoon?

They're here to learn.

We, as law enforcement,
should protect

that sanctuary of academia,

but I know people will
look at me and say

your office has a
history of oppression.

I'm like, "Yeah, it does."

I recognize it so I don't
make those same mistakes,

but some people say,
"Yeah, talk is cheap."

You've heard the
saying, but yeah,

recognizing and understanding
where we've come from

hopefully allows us not to make

the same mistakes
moving forward.

We are confident that
we're gonna be able

to get you out to work tomorrow.

We have a wonderful
Democrat ticket.

Please be sure to show up
and just pull the lever

for a straight Democrat ticket.

We really need to vote
more than anybody else's.

You are so important to us.

Thank you. God bless you.

God bless America. Bye-bye.

Talk about a waste.

Talk to me.

Boxes and boxes of that stuff.

Now that one,
that's their thing,

but that's our central
committee, I guess.

I know, how frustrating is that

to have all these
materials left over

and we have one day left.

You know who doesn't have
any materials left over?

Us.

We're running into good
problems like that.

We're down to the final day.

we're running outta
campaign flyers.

We're running outta yard signs.

We're running outta big signs.

We're running outta
everything that we got.

Everything that we wanna

-run out of.
-I don't want anything left

in the office at
the end of tomorrow.

That works for me.

[indistinct] anyway?

[Campaigner] Just
drop it there, Karl.

I'll take care of it later.

So far, the early voting
numbers have looked fantastic

for us, and our party,
the Democratic Party,

has had a significant advantage

in who's come out
to vote so far.

Really, Frederick County is
very much a purple county.

There's actually more
republicans registered here

than there are democrats,
but that's not who we've seen

showing up this year.

That's true in the city of
Frederick and countywide,

but it's also been true in
some traditionally red areas.

This year, we've got
competitive candidates

in all corners of the county,

and we're actually
seeing fantastic turnout

in some of those areas.

I don't know how
to be a sheriff.

I don't know what policies we
should implement around here,

but I do know how
to work on campaign.

When I looked this year
at helping Karl's race,

I knew he was a
fantastic candidate.

He's gonna be a
fantastic sheriff,

but he's not a politician.

He doesn't innately
know how to campaign,

how to win an election,
how to target voters,

how to tailor his message.

We got the vote of
a Nazi, apparently.

You're expanding your
base pretty broadly.

Lady said she voted for me

because of my name, Karl Bickel,

and had a very
heavy German accent.

Her family that was there with
her described her as a Nazi.

Her own family?

Yeah, well they were German
too so maybe they knew.

I don't know.

But oh well.

Well, if we win by one, we'll
have to go by and thank her.

Yeah.

[rain patters]

Yeah.

[high beam clicker clicks]

[Chuck Voiceover] It all
depends on the turnout.

If the republicans turn
out, I'll be in good shape.

If the republicans
don't turn out,

it's probably a coin toss.

I do think I'll get some
of the democrat vote,

the old-school democrats.

Again, it all comes down
to who gets out to vote.

[Chuck grunts]

What I'm doing this time
is really unprecedented.

There's never been a four-term
sheriff in the county.

On the other hand, I had
to be mentally prepared

to go the other way too.

[truck wheezes]

Well, you always think
this could be it.

If you lose the
election, it's over.

The run is over. You're
always very anxious about it.

It's worn on me a
little bit more.

I'm 62 years old. I'm
not a pup anymore.

The political
dynamic's different.

The demographic of
the voter changes,

but I've just always
kept the same message,

kept the same course.

I haven't changed. The
times have changed, I guess.

[Joy] Is it gonna
be a big party?

[Chuck] Well, it
always is, isn't it?

[Chuck and Joy laugh]

-Yeah.
-It'll either be

a victory party or
a farewell party.

[Joy laughs]

Oh, Chuck, don't say that.

Everybody says
that you've got it.

I ran into a guy out
Walmart the other night

that works out at
the funeral home.

He kinda took the
wind out of my sails.

He said, "Hey, good
luck in the election."

He said, "I know
you're gonna win this."

He said, "But you
know, you might not."

He said, "Do you have
a plan?" [laughs]

I said, "Well, no."

He said, "Well, you know,

you're gonna to win this,

but you know,
anything can happen.

You need to have a plan."

What's his name?

I forget his last
name. First name's Bob.

But you know he's exactly-

He's right, but I
don't have a plan.

He's right.

What's he mean, "Do
you have a plan?"

That means in case you
lose, what is plan B?

I don't have a plan.

The voters are changing.

So he kinda made me
think a little bit,

but I don't have a plan.

My plan is to be sheriff.

Everything in this
country comes down

to democrat or republican.

It's what the squabble is

-all about.
-Well, Chuck,

you just have to pray about it.

Right?

I suppose.

Don't suppose. Do it.

Pray and put up more signs.

Yeah.

[Joy and Chuck chuckle]

[Clarence] They
will. That's good.

That's good advice.

All right. Thank you so much.

All right, bye-bye.

Preston, what do I need to do?

[Preston] This is just
[indistinct]. We gotta do his.

[Clarence] Okay. Six Birkhead.

That's six.

[Preston] That's six.

-Yeah.
-Drive safe.

[Preston] All right.

[Clarence] Thank you, sir.

[Preston] All right, Tom.

You get in trouble, call
me. I know the sheriff.

[Clarence laughs]

[Michael] We can't
leave any votes uncast

because, you see,

we're living in serious
and dangerous times.

[Clarence] Yeah.

Racism is raging.

Hate is heightening.

Intolerance is intensifying.

Bigotry is building.

Prejudice is proliferating.

We can't leave any votes behind.

Too many people got water
hosed so you could vote.

Too many many people got dog
bitten so you could vote.

Too many people got police
dragged for you to vote.

Too many people got hand
bashed for you to vote.

Too many people
got hate mongered

for you to have
the right to vote.

Too many people
got life threatened

for you to have
the right to vote.

Too many people got locked up

for you to have
the right to vote.

Don't you dare disrespect
their heritage.

Don't you dare
disrespect their legacy.

Don't you dare disrespect
their sacrifice.

Everybody ought to make
sure that they get out

and exercise that right to vote.

[Audience Member] Yeah!

Tell your teacher,

and tell your preacher,

tell Miss Lady,

and tell Slim Shady

we can't leave

any votes behind.

Tell Robby, and tell Bobby,

tell Lily, and tell Millie

we can't leave votes behind.

Tell Jade, and tell Wade,

tell Moe, and tell Jo we
can't leave any votes behind.

Tell Andy and Mandy and Randy
and Sandy we can't leave.

Tell Sharon and Darren and
Karen and Aaron we can't.

Tell Miguel and Danielle
and Manuel and Nell!

Get you spouse out the house.

Tell the clerk where ya work.

Tell all them at the gym.

Even tell the crazy
fool in the carpool.

We can't afford to leave
any votes on the sidelines.

Hello, Antoine.

I'm with the Value
the Vote Group,

and we see that you're
a registered voter

who didn't vote in
the past election.

You would probably agree

that the times the
very critical now,

and the only way these drastic
situations can be changed is

with your vote.

We need you.

Every citizen needs to vote

to change health and
social justice issues.

Also, there are six
amendments proposed

that need to be defeated,
including voter ID,

which can make it difficult
for some people to vote

such as those in nursing homes,

so please give us a
chance to change society

for the better with your vote.

Election day is
tomorrow, November 6.

So come out and vote,
please. Goodbye.

[momentous music]

[Anchorwoman] Voters will
decide the $5 million debate

between president Donald Trump's
take-no-prisoner politics

and the Democratic
Party's supercharged fight

to end the Republican
monopoly in U.S. politics.

There are indications that a
blue wave may help Democrats,

but two years after an election

that proved polls and
prognosticators wrong,

nothing is certain on the
first nationwide elections

of the Trump presidency.

I don't think their minds
are made up. Do you?

I think there's still a
small percentage of both.

They're still trying to
make that final decision.

I'd like to spend maybe
20, 30 minutes here.

We'll go take a break
and grab some lunch.

Shake some hands.
Kiss some babies.

-All right.
-All right.

[momentous music continues]

-How are you?
-Howdy.

Hi. How're you doing?

[Pro-Lifer] Doing good.

You are the sheriff, aren't you

I am. Is that good?

[Pro-Lifer] Yeah,
if you're pro-life,

that's what I'm looking for.

Absolutely. I'm pro life in
prison for bad guys. [laughs]

I'm actually standing at the
polls just to say hi to people

and maybe have 'em get
one last look at me

and hope I get their vote
when they walk in the door.

[Interviewer] How
are you feeling?

I'll let you know at
10 o'clock tonight.

I feel guardedly confident.
I'll put it like that.

Maybe that's the best term.

How you guys doing?

[Guy] Howdy.

How's it going?

You guys want a
four o'clock number?

596 for Republicans.

Democrats: 644.

We've been like this since
quarter to seven this morning.

Wow, perfect.

[Man In Yellow] You'll earn
that pay today, won't ya?

You got that right! Okay?

Thank you.

[Clerk] Yep.

[phone rings]

[Karl] Oh, I don't
know who that might be.

[Jerry] Hey, Uncle
Karl. It's Jerry.

Are there any outlets you know

that we can watch
to see the results?

You don't think Rachel
Maddow's gonna cover it?

[Jerry] I'm watching that too.

[Karl and Jerry laugh]

I'll text everybody
and let everybody know.

I've got your number, don't I?

[Jerry] Well, you do now.

Yeah, I do now.

Yeah, I'll send a text out

saying yay or nay.

It's gonna be late though.

The polls were supposed
to close at eight o'clock.

There's apparently, at
some of the polling places,

still people in line.

[Jerry] Well, that's
the good news.

Well, as long as they're
voting our way, it's good news.

[Chuck] Listen, I ain't get
real comfortable with it.

[Man] Yeah, I know
it's a little scary.

[Chuck] County's changing.

[Man] Well, the whole
country's changing.

You got all these people
like Taylor Swift out there

telling everybody to go vote.

They don't know what
they're voting for.

[Woman] Did you make
it all the way through?

[Voter] Yes.

[Karl] Thank you very
much for hanging in there.

[Ben] How long did
you have to wait?

[Voter] An hour.

[Voter] An hour 20 minutes.

[Ben] Thank you for staying.

-Thank you.
-Thank you very much.

[Karl] Weird, never had
this kind of stuff here.

No, I had people coming out
just a couple of minutes ago.

This woman and her
daughter were saying,

"We voted here for years.

We've never seen
anything like this."

That's what we've
been working on.

[Karl] I hope it's
going our way.

That's why we
knocked on the doors

in these neighborhoods
five times.

[Chuck] He's gotta
turn 20,000 votes.

I don't know if he can
get 20 more thousand votes

than he had the last time.

Matter of fact, the closer
this stuff comes to the border,

I think the more it helps me.

Oh, it has to.

[Chuck] Locally, people are
gonna say, you know what,

what he's doing is
not a bad thing.

-Yeah.
-Right.

It's scary.

Yep. All right, guys. Goodnight.

Thank you. See ya later.

[drawn out music continues]

[supporters applaud]

[Supporters] Chuck! Chuck!

Thank you all so much
for coming out tonight.

It really means a lot.

I got great friends
in this county,

all through the county,
great family, friends.

All of you are here
tonight to share

in what we hope's a victory.

Good to see ya.

How are you?

I gotta tell you, this
has been a tough one.

This has been nine months. It's
been a grueling nine months.

I left it all out there
on the battlefield today.

Whatever comes out, comes out.

[baby beats]

-Yeah!
-Yeah!

It's been a great run,

so let's have a good time.

Let's drink some
beer. Let's eat.

Let's have a real redneck
party in this house.

[Supporters] Whoo!

We're watching numbers come in.

Let's take a big
victory tonight.

[supporters cheer]

You're gonna do it.

[Chuck] I hope so.

And hell, if you don't, then
we still gonna celebrate.

That's right.

[drawn out music continues]

[supporters chatter]

[Supporter] Sheriff.

[Karl] Oh, not yet. We'll
have to wait and see.

[Supporter] Oh, I told you once,

we claim everything we want.

[Supporter] Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

[indistinct] really like
to get a picture with you.

What? Sure.

We all live in our
own little bubbles.

Within my own little bubble,
it looks very positive.

I talk with a lot of
law-enforcement people that say

the only people they
know are republicans,

and they're all voting for me.

We hear a lot of
feel-good things,

but we won't let go
until later tonight.

[Chuck] They want Fox News,
is that what they're saying?

Yeah.

I'm trying.

Taylor, can you get
Fox news on there?

Uh, like their live feed?

Who has the computer?

I don't know.

[Shep] In five Republican
held house seats,

the math has been against
the Republicans all day.

Throughout this contest,
it was widely believed

that Democrats had
the likely chance

to take over the House
of Representatives.

Now Fox News projects,

the Democrats will win the
House of Representatives.

Mike Emanuel is our chief
congressional correspondent.

He's live on Capitol Hill. Mike.

[Mike] Well, Shep, good
evening. Yeah, Democrats had-

[supporters cheer]

What were the results?

Get some numbers.

National results are coming in,

so we're finding out
results for governor's races

and house races
and Senate races.

Some of them are not
looking like what we want,

but a lot of them
are dropping in

how Democratic candidates
we're hoping for.

We're actually picking up,
especially in the House,

some seats that maybe
we're gonna be a reach.

We've got folks on the
other side of the room

that are really staying on top

of the local Frederick
County results,

which still haven't
been released.

We're waiting and hoping to
find out our local results.

[Man] You have 230. In control.

[Woman] Yeah, probably not yet.

Yeah.

I knew all day.

Everywhere, I was hearing
was larger Democrat numbers.

[Woman In Maroon] Oh,
that don't look good.

I reckon you needn't even
told me you might say that.

[Chuck yawns]

The thing that I will
tell those Republicans is

you can come and get it,

but Durham, we do it like
Durham in here, don't we?

[Supporters] Whoo!

We're gonna take those
progressive values,

and we're gonna make sure

that people get what they
deserve [indistinct].

I dare you to try and stop us

because we got some new
reinforcements as of tonight.

[phone rings]

Hey Ryan, we're on our way
down to Beyu right now.

Okay, I'm coming.

-Tell 'em I'm coming.
-[supporters applaud]

[Speaker On Stage]
Thank you so much.

Now there's a new
sheriff in town.

[supporters cheer and applaud]

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Good evening, Durham.

[supporters cheer]

Haven't seen the numbers lately.

Preston, what are the numbers?

We don't know?

[Preston] You're winning!

I'm winning?

You all do know we're making
history tonight, right?

[Supporters] Yeah. [applaud]

I am truly blessed and honored,

looking forward to serving
you as your sheriff.

If you need a job, apply
online. Don't call me direct.

[supporters laugh]

[Woman] 70,000 votes.

70? All right, very good.

[Supporters] Whoo!

For all of you who
have already asked

for that get out of jail free.

My advice is don't go to
jail in the first place.

[guests laugh]

You won't need to call me.

[Anchorman] There will be wins

for both sides tomorrow morning.

The talk of a blue wave with
taking over 45 house seats,

that talk has long passed
in the last couple of hours.

The Democrats,
Fox News projects,

will take the house, but
not with a wave at all.

[supporters cheer and applaud]

[Caller] You're
up by some I see.

Yeah. Not as much as I thought

-or hoped.
-That's all good.

I know.

[Caller] Anything counts.

That's it. 51%, right?

[Caller] Yeah.

[Ben] Of the remaining precincts

that I haven't reported yet,

a full half are in the city.

-Yes!
-Ah, good.

[Ben] That's what we needed.

[Supporter] High five.

Don't be defeated.

No, not over till it's over.

Exactly.

Right.

[clock ticks]

Hey, Blake. You're almost to 55.

That's still [indistinct].

Gotta take what you can get.

-51's all we need.
-That's it.

The turnout was good.

The turnout was great.

We were just standing at a place

that had hour and a half waits

at eight o'clock.

[clock continues ticking]

Where we probably got a
significant number of the votes.

Oh right, where we probably
get two out of every three.

[Woman] I have no idea.

[clock continues ticking]

All right, so we're still there.

You put up a good fight.

Oh, it isn't over yet.

Oh, I know, but...

[ticking music continues]

[Supporters] Whoo!

[music becomes bittersweet]

Folks, I think I got a
fourth term as sheriff.

We got a victory.

All right, we didn't get there.

Well, I'm going
fishing tomorrow.

Look, I can tell ya, I
think we'd all agree,

Frederick County's not really
going in a good direction.

I don't see it turning
around any time soon.

-We had 16,000 votes.
-That's good, but...

That's really good.

We couldn't get any
more negative publicity

than we did on Chuck.

Thanks for your
friendship, your support,

everything you've done to
help me get here tonight.

See what the next
four years brings,

but let's see if we can turn
this county the other way.

[Supporters] Whoo!

[Man With Wave] We're still
Fredneck in some areas,

but we're changing.

Yeah, we're trying.

[bittersweet music continues]

[Chuck] That was close.

[Man] You're right.

[Woman] You did great.

That was close though.

Ah, exactly what
I though you'd be.

I thought you'd be 53, 55.

I'm telling you,
democrat turnout,

you got a lotta
democrats voting for ya.

[Woman] We won. That's
all that matters.

Win's a win. Doesn't
matter how many.

Nobody remembers the
score, just the win.

Just relax.

[bittersweet music continues]

Y'all take care, now.

[bittersweet music continues]

Take her easy.

Sorry I let you guys down.

[Supporter] No, good
job. No, I'm good.

[bittersweet music continues]

I'm flabbergasted actually.

Jesus, God, man.

I'm telling ya

the democrats really
come out, didn't they?

[traffic hums]

[sophisticated music]

-You nervous?
-Yes.

[Man] Good for you.

[Clarence laughs]

[Woman] Hey.

[Clarence] Thank you
so much for coming.

[Woman] I wouldn't
have missed it

for nothing in the world.

[Clarence] Thank you so much.

[Woman] No problem.

Thank you for joining
us on this historic day.

We're gonna get things started.

The swearing in of the new
sheriff in Durham is always

an auspicious occasion,
but today is special;

Clarence Birkhead
will also become

the very first African
American to serve

in that hallowed role
in our community.

[virile music]

As with the installation
of every new sheriff,

Clarence Birkhead
personally represents.

[Commander] Sheriff's
Office. Attention!

[virile music continues]

Welcome to the historic fourth
term swearing-in ceremony

for Sheriff Charles A. Jenkins.

Today's keynote speaker,
Mr. Thomas Homan.

Mr. Homan strongly opposes
illegal immigration,

supports strong illegal
immigration enforcement.

I think, in particular,
if you are concerned

with the state of prisons
in the United States,

if you're concerned about
issues around immigration,

if you're concerned
about issues around guns,

if you're concerned
about domestic violence,

if you are concerned
about any of these things,

it's an appropriate time
to start paying attention

to who's running for
sheriff in your county,

what their policies are.

I envision a Durham for all,

inclusive and inviting,
sharing in the prosperity

that we are all experiencing.

Just thinking about how
much power sheriffs have,

how much influence they have,

over people's day to day lives,

I think if I had to see a
sheriff on the ballot again,

I would be doing a lot of
research and I would be looking

at who the sheriff's
affiliated themselves with.

Half of this country hates
me, and I don't care.

I've worked with six presidents,

but nobody's done more
for law enforcement

and border security and
immigration enforcement

than President Trump.

-That's just a stone cold fact.
-[audience applauds]

[Sue] I think sheriffs
will always be part

of the American landscape.

I do have quite a bit
to say this morning.

Some of it, little bit unusual,
little out of the norm,

but I think it needs to be said.

But I think as the
community in general

becomes more open minded

about what a cop looks like,

what a president looks like,

I think we're evolving,

but the office of sheriff might
be one of the last bastions

of changing the iconic image.

We're experiencing a really
dangerous shift in society

in which a certain segment of
the population on the left,

even here locally, seem
to want unenforced laws,

promote legalized drugs,
encourage civil disorder,

open borders, and even want
Frederick city and County

to become a sanctuary county.

All systems need to be reformed.

I think some people...

Change is a scary thing.

We must do our
very best to ensure

that everyone feels safe.

Thank you so much.

That was a good time.

No matter the color
of their skin,

no matter what your
immigration status is,

what your gender is,
your sexual orientation,

or your religious beliefs,

we are a Durham for all.

People don't like change,
are prepared to resist it.

I will not, and I repeat,

I will not allow
Frederick County

to become a sanctuary county.

[audience applauds]

But sooner or later, it's
gonna reach a breaking point.

when that happens, you're not
gonna be able to compromise.

You may just lose everything.

[Chuck] I, Charles A. Jenkins.

[Swearer-In] Do you
solemnly declare and affirm.

Do you solemnly declare-

I think people value the
local ties, the local culture,

that you often see in
the elected sheriffs.

I think that means
a lot to people.

On the other hand, the
temptation to get carried away

might be irresistible
for some elected sheriffs

Place your left
hand on the Bible,

and raise your right.

I.

Clarence Birkhead.

Do solemnly swear

that I will support and
maintain the constitution.

[swaggering rock
music continues]

[audience laugh]

Can you say that again.

♪ It's month of the dead ♪

♪ It's the weeks of ghosts ♪

♪ The haunted memories ♪

♪ Come through in floods ♪

♪ By the time
November comes in ♪

♪ I can see my
breath in the air ♪

♪ It's the month of the dead ♪

♪ The sleepless live here ♪

♪ And I fall on my knees ♪

♪ Like a fallen tear ♪

♪ And while I'm down there ♪

♪ I may as well
pray for my soul ♪

♪ Mmm, do the things
I said I'd never do ♪

♪ By the time November comes ♪

[racy guitar break]

♪ Thought I knew the
man I thought I was ♪

♪ Yeah, by the time
November comes ♪

♪ Do the things I
said I'd never do ♪

♪ By the time November comes ♪

♪ By the time November comes ♪

♪ I can see my
breath in the air ♪

♪ By the time November comes ♪

♪ I can see my
breath in the air ♪

♪ By the time November comes ♪

♪ I can see my
breath in the air ♪

♪ By the time
November comes in ♪

♪ I can see my
breath in the air ♪