Paul Burch Wins Second Term as Mobile County Sheriff, Defeating Pamela Laffitte

MOBILE, Ala. — Incumbent Paul Burch won a second term as Mobile County sheriff in Tuesday’s election, defeating Democratic challenger Pamela Laffitte.

Burch, a Republican, led 51.6% to 48.4%, according to Mobile County Probate Court numbers, with 99% of returns in. An election-night tally as of 9:06 p.m., with 79 of 80 precincts reporting countywide, showed him ahead 64,946 votes to 60,999. Results remain unofficial until certified.

“Thank all of you for your support,” Burch said at the Mobile County Republican Party’s election-night gathering. “I want to say to the community, for those of you who did not vote for me, I hope you’ll watch what we do the next four years and vote for me next time.”

Burch’s first term and the Prichard contract

Burch, a Mobile native, was elected in 2022 after the retirement of longtime Sheriff Sam Cochran. He previously worked as a patrol officer and an investigator handling homicides, narcotics and other criminal cases.

He reached the general election after winning nearly 72% of the Republican primary vote in May, turning back a challenge from Paul Prine, a former Mobile police chief and mayoral candidate.

Much of the past several months has centered on Prichard, the county’s second-largest municipality. In June, Burch and Mobile County District Attorney Keith Blackwood announced the first arrest in an investigation of corruption in the Prichard Police Department. The sheriff’s office then took over patrol and dispatch duties in the city under an emergency arrangement.

In October, Burch appeared with Prichard Mayor Carletta Davis and Mobile County Commissioner Connie Hudson to announce a one-year, $1.2 million policing contract. The Prichard City Council approved the deal first, and the County Commission gave final approval on Oct. 8. It runs through September 2027 while the city rebuilds its department.

Davis has said the Prichard Police Department has not been dissolved and is going through a phased rebuilding process. A special Mobile County grand jury recommended in July that the city abolish the department and build a new one.

Burch said in October that domestic violence calls make up a large share of his deputies’ workload in Prichard.

Laffitte’s campaign

Laffitte is a retiree of the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office after 26 years, including service as a corrections sergeant, and a former dispatcher with the Prichard Police Department. She has also been vice president and president of the Mobile County Merit System and ran for Alabama secretary of state in 2022.

She advocated expanding body camera use for deputies, placing more deputies in schools and pursuing legislation to reinstate concealed-carry permit requirements.

Her place on the ballot was in doubt during the summer. Laffitte was removed as the nominee after a challenge to her eligibility, then was restored in August when the Alabama Democratic Party’s Appeals Committee ruled in her favor. “I look forward to earning the support and vote of the people of Mobile County,” she said at the time.

In October, the SPLC Action Fund endorsed her. She also called on Mobile city officials to freeze any use of reserve funds to replace the $14.7 million the city lost in a criminal financial scheme until every investigation into the loss is finished.

At a Democratic rally in downtown Mobile two days before the election, Laffitte said she was hearing a call for change. “To see that their sheriff’s office is actually patrolling their county with the taxpayer dollars and being good stewards of that money as well,” she said.

A margin of about 3,900 votes

About 3,900 votes separated the candidates in the 9:06 p.m. tally. In his remarks Tuesday night, Burch asked voters who backed Laffitte to judge his next four years in office.

Mobile County voters also cast ballots Tuesday on two school board seats, a local amendment on senior property tax exemptions and a referendum on up to $82 million in road, bridge and drainage bonds.