Issue #15: Electing Coroners on a Partisan Ballot
Issue #15: Electing Coroners on a Partisan Ballot
Hundreds of counties still elect Coroners
Four years ago, I decided to come up with a Halloween-themed article for my website. What could I write about that combined politics and spookyyyyy themes. Some random google searches and suddenly it was clear - coroner elections!
That’s right readers, many areas still elect county coroners. Not only that, but a vast majority of those elections take place on partisan ballots. Candidates run for coroner the same way they run for Sheriff or Commissioner. Read about the history of coroners in American here.
The Coroner’s responsibilities vary from state to state, but the key one is the same… determining the cause of death. This of course is very important when potential homicide is in play and incorrect determinations by coroners can cause serious problems in cases.
Many states now use medical examiner systems - where a paid professional manages cases. However, many counties, over 1200!, still elect coroners.
Coroners races used to be even more common. With time, many states ended the elections with amendments - or changes were made with new constitutions. Coroner races remain on partisan ballots due to local or state laws that set rules for local offices.
In 2017, I crawled through mountains of data to figure out the party makeup of the elected coroners in America. Some states made data readily available. Other states were nightmares - with no central directory - leading to county-by-county searches.
“In the year 2021 of the second age. Here follows the account of Isbell. High Mapper of Florida and researcher of coroner races. They have come to me, the election results. They shall be staple of my website. All those who follow in my path are bound not to map coroner races - for I will risk no interference upon my niche. It is, precious to me, thou I buy it with great pain.”
With that work - came this. Covered in detail here.
Well, the voters have spoken, Republicans are more trustworthy with dead bodies! Look, I like Democrats on social spending issues - but I don’t trust them to figure out what killed grandpa.
While Republicans lead the coroner count - it can be seen that many southern states still had large numbers of Democratic coroners. This is what makes coroner races fascinating. They show the remnants of the old dixiecrat coalition in the south. These counties represent a time when local Democrats dominated the region. What is occurring now is a VAST majority of these longtime office-holders have gone unopposed for years.
The fact is, perhaps 80% of coroner races go uncontested when up. Its not a fun job, and is part time in many rural areas. Often a local funeral home owner is the one who runs - and can serve for decades - never facing opposition.
However, I’ve been tracking these races since 2017, and Democrats are beginning to see their rural numbers fall. Each cycle brings more retirements - which are instant flips to the GOP. Democratic incumbents have also been switching parties as well.
An example from Mississippi’s 2019 elections - which I wrote about here.
In 2019, Republicans made a net gain of 8 coroner offices.
Of these flips, all were retirements or party switches. No Democratic incumbent actually lost.
When the elections were over, over 20 Democrats sat in Trump/Reeves counties. Almost all were unopposed in the election.
Of course, incumbents can and have been swept out purely for party reasons. This happened in 2017 in Pennsylvania - which I covered in this article.
In PA, Democrats made an historic sweep of local offices in Chester County. This was notable because Chester was a longtime Republican/Suburban bastion. Local Democrats never won races. However, following Clinton’s solid win in the county - the local Democrats made a push to sweep the four county-wide offices up that year. Democrats ran a Christina VandePol, who did have a medical degree, against the incumbent coroner. She won.
This was an example of slate voting. All the local Democrats won their races, with similar voting patterns across the board.
Meanwhile, in Greene County, the longtime Democratic coroner lost his re-election. The Republican was a retired funeral director. In the end, partisan affiliation mattered. While Democrats still control a few local offices in the ancestrally-blue area, the offices are slowly but steadily turning red.
Oh and this race was decided by an EIGHT VOTE MARGIN
Now luckily these races saw opponents win who were at least qualified. Many states do not have qualification requirements for these offices. This means unqualified people can take these positions. A medical degree is rarely a requirement.
Several states require elected coroners to undergo training once elected. However, the time between taking office and completing the training can stretch for over a year.
Some states have mandated requirements. In 2002, Colorado passed a measure to set requirements to be a coroner in the state.
Requirements vary by state. But untrained coroners have led to plenty of problems in the past. Be sure to read my 2017 article for more details on that subject.
Qualifications aside - partisan affiliation in Coroner races is a bad idea because it shields bad candidates. In 2018, the Fayette Coroner was being sued for sexual harassment and assault - but thanks to his party ID, he was able to win. Fact is most voters don’t follow these races. Party ID becomes a cheat-sheet.
In 2016, Hot Springs County, Arkansas ousted its longtime Democratic coroner - who lost to a Republican challenger who had some experience - but nothing matching the incumbent’s 3-decade plus time in the job.
Aaron Davis’ election only led to a 6-month term where he constantly clashed with the county commission over budgets. Midway through his first year, he resigned from the job in frustration.
If you enjoyed this newsletter - then keep an eye out on my website and twitter on Saturday or Sunday - when I will be releasing my 2021 update to the coroner partisan affiliations. In the meantime, be sure to check out my past writings on these races.
The Pennsylvania Coroner Elections
The Mississippi Coroner Elections
And last but not least, I give you a map of the current Coroner of New Orleans.
And I give you an add that the now-Coroner ran in a previous bid for the job.
That man is running for re-election this year - UNOPPOSED.