LANSING – There’s a new sheriff in town – actually, a lot of news sheriffs in a lot of towns across the state.

In November, 25 new sheriffs won their first election for the office – a smaller turnover than four years earlier. Voters in each of the 83 counties elect a sheriff to serve every four years.

Among the newly elected, 15 had been appointed before the election when the incumbents left early, according to the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association.

Then they sought a full four-year term in November.

Only one of the other newcomers, Darrin Kudwa, defeated an incumbent, Menominee County Sheriff Mike Holmes.

Kudwa had been a part of the Menominee Police Department for almost 17 years, most recently as a detective.

“I had a lot of different experiences and different training, I thought I brought a lot to the table,” he said, “I had a lot to offer in a leadership role so that’s why I decided to run.”

Kudwa was part of the Upper Peninsula Substance Enforcement Team run by the State Police.

Dan Pfannes, the deputy director of the association, said the turnover “had something to do with people choosing to retire after multiple years of service – that’s the main reason most offices were vacated.”

Pfannes spent four years as Westland police chief and almost 15 years as an undersheriff in Wayne County before taking his role as deputy director of the association.

Sheriff Ryan Swope of Crawford County took over when then-Sheriff Shawn Kraycs retired.

Swope was appointed to the position in late 2022, and Kraycs is now a county commissioner.

“When I put my name in the hat for the appointment, it was with the expectation that I had the goal to run in 2024,” said Swope.

Swope attended the National Sheriffs’ Institute in Washington, D.C., with 28 other sheriffs from around the country.

“The things I learned had to do with the betterment of internal workings of the sheriff’s office,” he said.

“The things I learned there and I’m striving to implement are what I think is better for the office and the community,” he said.