Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer draws a challenger

Kari Chisholm

We don't typically cover sheriff's races around here, but this one promises to be a doozy.

On Sunday, Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer outraged his fellow law enforcement officers by actually claiming that they should buckle to some of the Malheur occupiers' demands:

He said freeing a father-son ranching team from prison "would be a start. Sending the FBI home would be a start."

On Monday, former Grant County undersheriff Todd McKinley filed to run against Palmer in this year's election -- and specifically called out Palmer's nonsense:

McKinley said he decided to run after witnessing the “audacity of individuals who think they can dictate the course of Grant County, without the input of all.”

“When I took my first oath of office as a reserve deputy on April 3, 2000, it was that I would support the Constitution and the laws of the United States and of the state of Oregon, and to honestly and faithfully perform the duties imposed upon the member under the laws of Oregon,” he said in the statement. “I do not remember that there were any clauses that told me this was optional, and up to my interpretation of the Constitution and laws.”

If they're the only two candidates that file, the election will happen in November. If a third candidate gets in, there will be a May primary followed by a November run-off.

By Kari Chisholm Jan. 26, 2016