Early voting has begun for this month's election, and in Crawford County, the Sheriff's seat is up for grabs.
There's two candidates on the ballot: current Sheriff Lewis Walker and his opponent David Mathews.
Sheriff Lewis Walker is running for his third term, but his challenger thinks the department needs new leadership.
"I want to be sheriff because I like helping people," said Mathews.
He goes by "Pee Wee" and runs with the slogan "Make Crawford County Safe Again."
Both Mathews and Walker grew up in Roberta. Walker has 29 years with the Sheriff's office and he says if he wins a third term, he'll focus on training.
"To make our people better to serve the citizens of Crawford County," said Walker.
Mathews says his prior experience with the Roberta Police Department and security jobs qualifies him for the role.
The main problem -- he believes -- that faces the Crawford County Sheriff's department is the turnover rate.
"The retention of employees is my main concern also, why are these people leaving?" said Mathews.
Walker agrees and says it's the biggest issue his office faces.
"We're surrounded by other counties and our people leave sometimes for better pay," said Walker.
Mathews says they need more staff to keep officers from working overtime and burning out.
We asked the former cop why he took a break from law enforcement. He told us he retired, but the Georgia Peace Officers Standards and Training Council, or P.O.S.T, says Mathews was terminated in 2000. His P.O.S.T certification was revoked in 2002.
"Well everyone has a past. I've met all the requirements in the state of Georgia to run for any position. My background check is clear," said Mathews.
According to court records, in October of 2000, Mathews plead guilty to three counts of public indecency. Three women at Fort Valley State University say Mathews showed them his private parts.
He spent 12 months on probation for the misdemeanor sentence and because he was a first offender, his record was wiped clean.
Though Mathews doesn't have a criminal background anymore, he still has to get his P.O.S.T certification back. If he wins the Sheriff's race, he would need the P.O.S.T council to reinstate his certification within six months.
P.O.S.T wouldn't comment specifically on Mathews case but said in situations like this, getting your certification back, is a 50/50 chance.
We asked Sheriff Walker if he thinks voters should know of Mathews past.
"If it's been brought out, then quite naturally the people should know," said Walker
Mathews says regardless of his history, he's more concerned with the county's future.