A man awaiting trial on a murder charge for allegedly killing his daughter’s alleged abuser won the Republican nomination for county sheriff in Arkansas, according to the Arkansas secretary of state’s office.
Aaron Spencer scored over 53% of the vote in the Republican primary, defeating incumbent sheriff John Staley and another candidate, the state results show.
Spencer, an army veteran and a farmer, first made headlines in October of 2024, when he was charged with shooting and killing a 67-year-old man who had been charged with sexually abusing Spencer’s 13-year-old daughter.
Spencer’s attorneys, Erin Cassinelli and Michael Kiel Kaiser, told NBC News last year that his actions were “justified under Arkansas law in taking action to protect his daughter and himself.”
Spencer said the case, which is still pending, helped inspire his run for office.
“I’m the father who acted to protect his daughter when the system failed,” he said in his campaign announcement.
“Through my own fight for justice, I’ve seen first hand the failures in law-enforcement and in our circuit court, and I refuse to stand by while others face these same failures,” he said, adding the campaign “isn’t about me. It’s about every parent, every neighbor, every family who deserves to feel safe in their homes and safe in their community.”
He’ll face off against the Democratic candidate, Brian Mitchell Sr., in November.
