A Vancouver Police Department corporal will run for Clark County sheriff next year.

Rey Reynolds has announced that he will seek the office in the November 2022 general election. He is apparently the first person to announce a campaign to succeed incumbent Sheriff Chuck Atkins, 66, who said more than two years ago that he would retire at the end of his term.

Reynolds, 62, has spent 37 years in law enforcement, including roughly 23 years with the Vancouver Police Department.

Before joining the department, Reynolds worked for 14 years with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. He was named Clark County Officer of the Year in 1987 for his work as a game warden.

A news release stated that Reynolds believes in “community-based policing” and “defending constitutional freedoms.”

“I’ve taken the oath of office four times, starting as a rookie officer. I take that oath seriously,” Reynolds said in a statement. “I believe that we need to adhere to what the oath stands for – protecting our constitutional republic.”

Reynolds, a Republican, last year ran for state Senate in the 49th Legislative District, but was defeated by incumbent Democratic Sen. Annette Cleveland. In an interview before that election, he described himself as an “independent Republican” who believes in less government and spending. “I am a strong believer that parents need to be parents, and the government needs to understand that control over our families needs to remain with parents and not with bureaucracies,” he said in a March 2020 interview.

Reynolds is also known for his singing voice and is a regular performer at community events, such as Monday’s Memorial Day observance.

The new sheriff will oversee the implementation of a recently approved body-worn and dash camera program. Pressure to create the program intensified after two recent shooting deaths of Black men — 21-year-old Kevin Peterson Jr. and 30-year old Jenoah Donald — by sheriff’s deputies.

The successful candidate will also be involved in talks about the future of the antiquated and crowded Clark County Jail, an issue county officials have discussed for several years.

Reynolds will hold a public informational event June 9 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Church on the Rock in Battle Ground, 500 S.W. Eaton Blvd.

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