LONOKE COUNTY, AR — An Arkansas man awaiting trial on a second-degree murder charge tied to the fatal shooting of his daughter’s alleged sexual abuser has won the Republican nomination for county sheriff in a race that has drawn national attention.

Aaron Spencer, 37, secured more than 53% of the vote in Tuesday’s three-person Republican primary for Lonoke County sheriff, according to reporting from the Arkansas Advocate and preliminary results from the Arkansas secretary of state cited by The New York Times. Spencer defeated incumbent Sheriff John Staley and challenger David Bufford and will face Democratic nominee Brian Mitchell Sr. in the November general election.

Lonoke County, located east of Little Rock and home to roughly 74,000 residents, is heavily Republican, making Spencer the early favorite heading into the fall race, The New York Times reported.

Spencer’s campaign quickly framed the primary win as a referendum on the local justice system.

“Tonight, the people of Lonoke County stood up and chose transparency and accountability,” Spencer said in a release from his campaign, according to the Arkansas Advocate. “This wasn’t a campaign about me. It was about every family who called for help and got nothing. That betrayal ends tonight.”

Spencer’s victory comes as he awaits trial in the 2024 shooting death of Michael Fosler, 67, a man who had been charged with sexually abusing Spencer’s teenage daughter. According to court records cited by the Arkansas Advocate and The New York Times, Fosler had been released on bond while facing dozens of felony charges involving the girl.

Authorities say Spencer fatally shot Fosler after finding his daughter with him in Fosler’s truck. Spencer has not denied shooting Fosler, but his attorneys have argued he feared for his daughter’s safety, The New York Times reported.

The case has generated intense public attention in the rural central Arkansas community and beyond, with many supporters portraying Spencer as a father who acted to protect his child.

According to KATV, Spencer was arrested in 2024 after the shooting. Lonoke County Prosecuting Attorney Chuck Graham said the situation is unusual, noting that Spencer is campaigning for office while facing a serious criminal charge.

“I’ve never had a defendant be running for the sheriff or any office while, you know, there, this is a court case that’s going on,” Graham told the station.

Spencer’s trial had originally been scheduled to begin in January but was postponed after the Arkansas Supreme Court removed the judge assigned to the case at the request of Spencer’s defense, according to KATV and the Arkansas Advocate. Retired Circuit Judge Ralph Wilson was appointed to take over the proceedings.

The state’s high court also rescinded an order issued by the previous judge that would have limited public access to the trial. It was the second time justices intervened in the case after withdrawing a gag order last year, the Arkansas Advocate reported.

A new trial date has not been finalized, though prosecutors told KATV the case could be scheduled for either April 27 through May 1 or June 22 through June 26 following a pretrial hearing set for March 18.

If Spencer is convicted of the felony charge, he would be barred from serving as sheriff even if he wins the general election.

“Now assuming one of those two dates we try it plenty of time, you know, he would be—he wouldn’t go any further if he’s convicted,” Graham told KATV.

Graham also expressed frustration that Fosler was killed before prosecutors could complete their case against him.

“We were in process of it and I think we were going to convict [Fosler,]” Graham told the station.

He added that much of the public narrative surrounding the shooting is incomplete.

“What’s out there in the public is not what happened. And they don’t know the facts of it. And that’s what we’ll lay out in our court case,” Graham said.

The prosecutor also warned against endorsing vigilante justice.

“Do you really want to live in a society where people just go and kill somebody? Like the Wild West that you had when that went on. That’s not how we operate these days. But in this office and all around Arkansas, the prosecutors just follow the law—no matter what public opinion is,” Graham told KATV. “Because we have cases where public opinion is on the other side where, you know, they want to take somebody out and hang them. You know, we don’t operate like that. But no, we don’t live in the Wild West.”

Spencer’s campaign has focused heavily on child protection issues. According to the Arkansas Advocate, he has called for creating a specialized investigative unit dedicated to child sexual abuse, grooming and domestic violence.

“For the price of a lawn mower, you can get out of jail after committing a sexual crime against a child. I think that’s absolutely ridiculous,” Spencer told Little Rock television station KATV in remarks later shared on his campaign’s Facebook page.

Despite the pending criminal case, Spencer has maintained strong support among some voters in the county. The Arkansas Advocate reported that the sheriff’s race drew more local interest than several statewide and federal contests on the ballot in Tuesday’s primary.

Brett Collins of Austin, who said he worked at the sheriff’s office for most of Staley’s 12 years as sheriff, told the outlet he backed Spencer after becoming dissatisfied with the incumbent’s leadership.

“I like Spencer’s odds,” Collins said after voting at the Cabot Public Library.

Another voter, Lisa McClure of Cabot, said she supported Spencer because long-serving officials can grow complacent.

She told the Arkansas Advocate that longtime incumbents tend to “get complacent in their positions and need to be replaced over time.”

Following the primary victory, Spencer thanked supporters and pledged to continue his campaign ahead of the general election.

“I’m incredibly grateful to the people of Lonoke County for placing their trust in me,” Spencer said in a statement to KATV. “Thank you to everyone who supported this campaign, worked hard, and showed up to vote This is an important step forward, but we still have one more election ahead. I look forward to continuing this conversation with the people of Lonoke County as we work toward building a safer, stronger Lonoke County.”