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Sheriff Alvin W. Clayton Sr., who was sworn into office May 1 after former Sheriff Harold Brown retired, has to beat two contenders to keep his seat for the next four years. He is being challenged by Sussex County Sheriff's Deputy Janette G. Epps and Bob Addison, a former county business owner who has a $10 million federal lawsuit pending against Brown and another former Surry depu- ty.

\"We've got street dealers, just like neighboring counties,\" said [Sheriff Alvin W. Clayton Sr.], a 28-year veteran of the department. He was sworn in on May 1 to replace retired Sheriff Harold Brown. [Bob Addison] agreed with Clayton's assessment. The sheriff's special election - the only local race on the Surry ballot next month - is expected to draw about 30 percent of the county's 5,400 registered voters, said Registrar Lucille Epps. Although there haven't been any candidate public forums or debates, all three say they will be campaigning more aggressively in coming weeks, and their campaign signs are popping up across the county. Addison has a $10 million federal lawsuit pending against Brown and former county deputy William Brinkman, in which he alleges that Brinkman planted cocaine during an October 2006 search of Addison's convenience store. A subsequent cocaine distribution charge filed against Addison was dropped in March 2008 due to a lack of \"prosecutorial merit,\" according to the lawsuit, and he had the charge expunged in June 2009.

[Alvin W. Clayton Sr.], 52 and a 28-year veteran of the Surry County Sheriff's Office, is being challenged by Sussex County Sheriff's Deputy Janette G. Epps and Bob Addison, a former county business owner who has a $10 million federal lawsuit pending against [Harold Brown] and another former Surry deputy. \"I think I'm qualified when you look at years of service and training,\" he said. \"I've worked in every capacity in the sheriff's department and I've come up through the ranks.\" \"I don't want to be a paper-pusher,\" added Epps, an Elbron resident. \"I'm not just going to sit behind the desk. I'm going to be involved and out in the community.\"