Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has once again wussed out, announcing today that he will not run for governor.
This, of course, means that Arpaio will remain as the head of MCSO at least until his term expires, or he is unable to fulfill his duties as sheriff.
Arpaio issued a press release moments ago announcing that he will not take the plunge and run for governor in this year's election, and thanking his supporters.
"I am humbled by the encouragement and outpouring of support for me to run for governor," Arpaio said in the release.
"However, at the same time, so many have supported my campaign for re-election that I do not want to betray them by running for another office."
Arpaio has been hinting for months that he would actually run this year -- unlike other years when the sheriff has hyped himself as a possible candidate, only to chicken out at the last minute.
A Joe Arpaio gubernatorial candidacy seemed even more likely this time around after ABC 15 claimed last week that it was basically a sure thing that he would enter the race.
One of the factors in Arpaio's decision seems to be that the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors would pick his successor, something that many suggest could spell trouble for the brown-bashing lawman.
"To leave this office open to appointment by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors of an interim sheriff may very well put us on a path that would be extremely displeasing to the voters of this county," Arpaio says.
One thing that we can think of that might be "displeasing to the voters" with Arpaio no longer running the MCSO would be the likely airing of Joe's dirty laundry
