The Sagadahoc County Courthouse, which houses the sheriff’s office, in Bath on Wednesday. The race for the county sheriff is between four-term Democratic incumbent Sheriff Joel Merry and his Republican rival, Sgt. Aaron Skolfield. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

BATH — When asked for their thoughts about the upcoming election for sheriff in their county Wednesday afternoon, many Bath residents said they hadn’t heard much.

Tourists with shopping bags breezed past as a handful of voters stopped on the sunny sidewalks downtown. Many said they hadn’t researched the candidates yet. Some remembered hearing inklings of criticism coupled with the words “Lewiston shooting,” but weren’t aware of the specifics.

The response was the same in other Sagadahoc County communities – Topsham, Bowdoinham, West Bath and Phippsburg.

A few voters said their community is clearly split on who they support, while others did not want to speak to a reporter out of concern they’d be judged by others for expressing their political opinion. Most people who declined an interview said they haven’t been following the race, or the candidates, at all.

Sgt. Aaron Skolfield, a Republican, is challenging four-term incumbent Sheriff Joel Merry, a Democrat, on the Nov. 5 ballot.

And whether they like it or not, last year’s mass shooting in Lewiston has loomed over the race, with the governor coming extremely close to making an endorsement.

The sheriff’s department had been warned twice about a Bowdoin man’s worsening mental health and threats of violence before he killed 18 people in Lewiston on Oct. 25. The commission investigating the shooting specifically criticized Skolfield for not using Maine’s yellow flag law to take the man’s guns.

At a news conference last month, Gov. Janet Mills said the shooting was the result of the “failure of human judgment,” specifically by Skolfield. She urged people to read the commission’s report before casting their vote. But while she didn’t explicitly recommend either candidate, she hinted that Skolfield wasn’t fit for the role.

Skolfield has bashed the report’s findings and at a news conference Tuesday said he believes the commission was politically motivated.

Nicolas Hamlin, of West Bath, outside the town office on Wednesday. Hamlin said he is leaning toward voting for Sgt. Aaron Skolfield in the race for Sagadahoc County sheriff because Skolfield “speaks passionately about doing a better job.” Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

Nicolas Hamlin, 45, of West Bath, said he has decided to vote for Skolfield because he “speaks passionately about doing a better job.”

“Nobody can deny that the Lewiston shooting was horrific,” Hamlin said. “I think a lot of things could have been done better. So with that in mind, I would be inclined to see a change in guard.”

Hamlin said he first met Skolfield at a county candidate event this year. He hopes that whoever is elected sheriff will be more communicative with the public.

“Transparency is wildly important,” he said. “Why not make sure everybody is (aware) of why everything does what it does?”

While the commission specifically calls out Skolfield and the department, 80-year-old William Foster, of Bath, doesn’t believe the findings are a legitimate basis for critiquing either candidate. The shooting has “confused” the election, he said.

William Foster in his living room in Bath on Thursday. Foster has expressed his support of the four-term Democratic incumbent Sheriff Joel Merry based on the leadership ability he has shown over the years. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

“Such gun violence is not something that any police force is well organized to engage and preclude, because these are just such random acts of individuals who have access to weapons that kill people quickly,” Foster said.

Three bright blue-and-white signs decorate his lawn, endorsing Kamala Harris for president, Denise Tepler for Maine Senate District 24 and Merry for sheriff. But Foster said he isn’t just supporting Merry because he’s a Democrat.

“My judgment in terms of having a sign is not really driven … by a political bias, it’s more in terms of who can do a good job going forward,” Foster said.

A man walks into the Sagadahoc Democrats pop-up office in Bath on Wednesday. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

He proudly displays the signs and submitted a letter to the Press Herald supporting Merry’s reelection because he thinks the sheriff is a crucial community-oriented role.

He said Merry has a solid record as a longtime leader, serving the county for four terms and keeping crime rates low. His opponent just doesn’t have the same record, Foster said.

“The sheriff’s offices are probably the most predictable and dependable source of law enforcement across these political communities that we call counties, in a place where a lot of communities really don’t have their own township capacity to provide quality public safety through law enforcement,” Foster said.

Debbi Brooks, 60, of Bath, said she doesn’t have any issues with Merry’s current leadership but hadn’t researched either candidate yet. She said she’s looking to vote for a sheriff who would represent her with respect and have strong communication skills, and that local elections can be even more important than the presidential race.

Debbi Brooks in downtown Bath on Wednesday. Brooks said she didn’t know too much yet about the upcoming local election and was planning to research the candidates. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

“If we have a concern in our community, first of all, the sheriff would be somebody that we would go to,” Brooks said.

But some voters, like 71-year-old Walter Whetstone, of Phippsburg, plan to keep their vote within their party. As a “solid Republican,” Whetstone said he is more concerned about the top of the ticket.

Whetstone hopes that the future sheriff will be responsible and straightforward.

“I don’t really have any knowledge of the present sheriff,” Whetstone said. “I know that they came under a little bit of fire because of the shootings in Lewiston. You have to be really knowledgeable about that to make a comment.”

Walter Whetstone, of Phippsburg, at the town transfer station on Wednesday. Whetstone plans to vote Republican down the whole ticket in November. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

Maine residents can register to vote online or by mail through Oct. 15, or any time in person before the general election ends at 8 p.m. on Nov. 5.

Voter registration cards can be filled out at town offices or city halls, any  Bureau of Motor Vehicle branch office, at most social service agencies, or at voter registration drives, according to the state’s voter guide.

Absentee ballots must be requested by Oct. 31 and received by the municipal clerk at 8 p.m. on Nov. 5.