Julia Garrison
News Editor
The current sheriff of Portage County is in hot water for a recent Facebook post, stirring controversy in the county that houses both Kent State University and Hiram College.
Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski made a now-deleted post on his public Facebook page on Friday, Sept. 13, sharing photos of headlines from Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle.”
The photographs contained the headlines “Kamala’s open borders are destroying small towns” and “Biden-Harris’ open border fuels migrant crime wave.” One photo featured Springfield, Ohio — a city at the epicenter of discussion from the Trump-Vance ticket.
Former President Donald Trump made a pointed comment at the community of Springfield during the Sept. 11 debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, claiming that Haitian migrants are “eating the pets of the people that live there.” Trump’s vice presidential pick — Middletown, Ohio native JD Vance — has been using Springfield as a talking point on the campaign trail, including on his X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) account.
In an interview with Dana Bash on Sept. 15, Vance backtracked on both his and Trump’s statements, but explained to Bash that he would “create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people.” He later explained in the same interview that he did not fabricate the story, but “created the actual focus” surrounding the story.
The caption of Zuchowski’s post was the major point of contention — it referred to Vice President Harris as a “Flip – Flopping, Laughing Hyena.” Zuchowski continued, suggesting that citizens should “write down all the addresses of the people who [have] her signs in their yards.” Zuchowski also referred to immigrants as “Illegal human ‘Locust.’” This post has since been deleted from his page.
Jon Barber, Zuchowski’s opponent and candidate for sheriff in the upcoming election, made a statement on his public Facebook on Sept. 14, claiming that “[Zuchowski] believes that he’s above the law.” Barber also urged citizens of Portage County to check their voter registration to participate in the election.
On Sept. 17, Zuchowski posted an update after his initial post had garnered major news attention. Zuchowski claimed that his former post was protected under the First Amendment, and that his post on his “personal facebook page” had been misinterpreted. Zuchowski also claimed that “[he is] a Law Man … Not a Politician,” and said that the citizens of Portage County must be willing to “accept responsibility for their actions,” if they vote for candidates with “liberal policies.”
“Sheriff Zuchowski has made an impermissible, unconstitutional threat against Portage County residents who wish to engage in protected First Amendment activity,” said American Civil Liberties Union Ohio’s legal director, Freda Levenson, in a statement issues the same day as Zuchowski’s Facebook update.
The Portage County chapter of the NAACP also held an emergency meeting on Sept. 19, with over 100 members of the community in attendance.
On the same day, members of the Committee on the Judiciary Jerrold Nadler and Mary Gay Scanlon sent a letter to Merrick Garland, the current attorney general, requesting that the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division “investigate disturbing reports,” related to Zuchowski’s Facebook post. Governor Mike DeWine shared that he found Zuchowski’s comments “very unfortunate,” with WKYC.
Zuchowski has also been questioned on social platforms for a post made about a steak roast he held for his campaign earlier this month where he is pictured receiving a large sign that reads “fuck around and find out.” The Anti-Defamation League’s glossary of extremism and hate lists this phrase as being adapted by the Proud Boys –– a right-wing extremist group.
In a statement released on the Portage County Democrats Facebook page on Sept. 20, Portage County Board of Elections Chair Randi Clites shared that the Portage County Sheriff Department will no longer be providing election security at the board of elections office on election day, a motion that passed 3-1.
In the statement, Clites explained that while she will not respond to Zuchowski’s comments directly, she hopes to ensure that “every voter in Portage County feels safe casting their ballot for any candidate they choose.”
“I do not for one second believe any Deputy would not continue to provide that level of service this election cycle, however not every citizen or voter has had that same opportunity to build the level of trust with our Deputies,” Clites said.
