The Pima County Sheriff race appears to be headed for a recount, with supervisors set to meet today to discuss the issue.

Results show that Democratic incumbent Sheriff Chris Nanos earned 495 votes more than his Republican challenger, Lt. Heather Lappin. That thin gap falls within range of the Arizona law that requires a recount in races when the winning margin is less than or equal to 0.5% of total votes.

But for many employees of the department, the outcome of this election is about far more than numbers and margins

One Pima County sergeant, who asked to remain anonymous due to fears of retaliation, said a Nanos victory could lead to drastic reduction in staff across the department.

“When you ask them what their plan is, everyone’s response is,‘Well, let’s see what happens in November,” he said, referencing pre-election conversations he has had with other staff. “So, it feels like there are a lot of people that are planning on leaving if he wins.” 

He said morale is the worst he’s seen in his 24 years in the department.

And while he understands there are outside factors that influence morale, he says many deputies don’t feel as if they have the support of the people at the top of the ladder.

“They don’t trust the command staff,” he said. “They see that only the yes-men get promoted. For people on patrol, they feel like they’re the lowest of the low.”

The sergeant cites minimum staffing in every district as another contributing factor to low morale. 

“Everybody is starting at minimum, and then you’re scrambling bodies,” he said. 

This type of low staffing is referred to as “preferred staffing” within the department, terminology that the sergeant said deputies see and feel.

Over the years, the department has had a tough time competing with salaries and benefits in other jurisdictions, but was able to rely on employees staying because they enjoyed their place of work.

“A lot of that is gone now, I think,” he said. “All decisions need to be made all the way at the top, and we’re talking deputy transfers that are being decided by chiefs.”

Whether morale will continue to be an issue will be determined by the results of the recount, he said.

He’s not the only one with concerns about a mass exodus should Nanos win another term.

Sgt. Aaron Cross, who was placed on administrative leave by Nanos for campaigning in what the sheriff said appeared to be a uniform, told Tucson Spotlight before the election that deputies are fed up with Nanos.

He said the department had already lost employees across several divisions, and said he knew of at least 16 deputies who were ready to leave if Nanos prevailed in the election.

“If he wins, they’re gone,” Cross said at the time. “it’s probably $100,000 minimum to train one deputy, so that’s a lot of money and experience we’d be losing.”

Despite Nanos’ apparent lead, challenger Lappin said she’s hopeful the recount will swing in her favor.

“I am so proud of the awareness our campaign created and regardless of the results, we broke down so many barriers during this campaign,” she said.

She’s also hopeful that an investigation into her suspension by Nanos weeks before the election will bear fruit, after supervisors unanimously voted for the Arizona Attorney’s General to look into the issue.

“I look forward to participating in the AG’s investigation … and for the truth to prevail,” she said.

Olivia Krupp is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact her at oliviakrupp@arizona.edu.

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