Douglas Alan Farmer

Current office and 2026 campaign

Douglas Alan Farmer is the Sheriff of Jackson County, North Carolina. He was first elected to the office in 2022 and won reelection in 2026. Because no Democratic candidates filed for the position, his 2026 primary victory guaranteed him another four-year term beginning in January 2027.

Farmer has prioritized drug enforcement through increased community patrols and collaboration with mental health and rehabilitation services. He expanded coverage in the Cashiers area and increased license checkpoints. He maintains school resource officers in Jackson County public schools. He invested roughly $150,000 in body scanners, added nursing staff and weekly physician visits, and established a medication-assisted treatment program using Vivitrol injections to address overdose risk among incarcerated individuals.

Background and education

Farmer graduated from the Basic Law Enforcement Training program at Southwestern Community College in 1997 and began his law enforcement career in 1998.

Career

Farmer worked eleven years at the Macon County Sheriff's Office, progressing from Detention Officer to Patrol Deputy, Patrol Sergeant, and Detective, and also served as a SWAT operator. He subsequently served at the Highlands Police Department, then worked one year in Iraq as a contractor training local law enforcement agencies. In 2010 he joined the Sylva Police Department, where he remained until retiring in 2019. In 2022 he ran for Jackson County Sheriff and defeated Democrat Rick Buchanan with 51.9 percent of the vote. In the 2026 Republican primary, Farmer defeated challenger Brandon Elders with more than 72 percent of the vote.

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