LOCAL OFFICES · NOVEMBER 3, 2026
Swain County Sheriff
2026 election results.
Candidate and choice votes for the whole contest, across all eligible counties. County-only contest in Swain County. Observed leaders are not race calls or certified winners.
WHOLE-CONTEST RESULTS
Every candidate. Exact counts.
| Candidate / choice | Party | Votes | Share | Election Day | Early in person | Provisional | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian E. Kirkland | Republican | 3,344 | 65.27% | 1,385 | 1,927 | 32 | 0 |
| David Southards | Democratic | 1,779 | 34.73% | 517 | 1,215 | 47 | 0 |
Election Day precinct reporting is not the percentage of votes counted. These reported results remain unofficial; this site does not call races or certify outcomes.
FOR A CLEAR BRIEFING
The count, with its context.
Swain County Sheriff — whole-contest votes. Brian E. Kirkland leads the published count. Vote gap: 1,565; margin: 30.55 percentage points. 5,123 candidate/choice votes; 100% ED precincts (5/5). Snapshot collected Nov 5, 2026, 12:53 PM EST. Unofficial reported results; not a race call or certification. Source: NCSBE public feeds. https://nc.zkqxcw.com/2026/races/swain-county-sheriff--county-87-6/
ELIGIBLE COUNTY BREAKOUTS · 1 COUNTY
Where these votes were reported.
| County | Leading candidate / choice | Vote total | ED precincts | Candidate detail | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swain | Brian E. Kirkland | 5,123 | 100% ED precincts (5/5) | All candidates & methods
|
County detail and aggregate publications may be fetched at different times. A difference is a synchronization observation, not evidence of an error. Missing county detail is not treated as zero.
Inspectable sources.
Collection: Nov 5, 2026, 12:53 PM EST. Snapshot: c59c17e70268d2fd. Contest ID: county:87:6.
Page: https://nc.zkqxcw.com/2026/races/swain-county-sheriff--county-87-6/ · Snapshot c59c17e70268d2fd · Collected Nov 5, 2026, 12:53 PM EST
Independent reference using public NCSBE data. Not operated or endorsed by the State Board of Elections.