The two-way Republican primary was more decisive. Houston had 59 percent of the vote, while Kurth had 41 percent.

Gonzales was named Bernalillo County sheriff by the Bernalillo County Commission after Darren White vacated the position to become Albuquerque public safety chief for Mayor R.J. Berry.

Though Davis did not win the primary, he did break a barrier; his campaign manager said he was the first openly gay man in the nation to run for sheriff.

On the primary election live blog, Alibi managing editor Marisa Demarco reported that David “says no matter who wins, they’ll likely be making history. The top three contenders are a Hispanic man from Albuquerque, a gay man and a woman.”

In 2008, Arpaio endorsed rancher Aubrey Dunn in a 2nd Congressional District primary race.

Earlier this  year, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors alleged that Arpaio had misspent over $50 million in public funds.

Here’s Houston’s Facebook page.

From Houston’s website:

Dan Houston, a strong and proven leader with 27 years of impeccable and outstanding law enforcement experience, is seeking to apply his experience, education and dedication as the next Bernalillo County Sheriff in 2010.

Dan Houston is the son of Sherwood and Violet Houston, who resided in the South Valley of Albuquerque.  He attended Barcelona Elementary, Harrison Middle School, and Rio Grande High School. Dan is married to his wife, Betty of  37 years and they have two grown children. Dan went on to obtain his Bachelor’s degree in Criminology from the University of Albuquerque, and has completed Master’s work at the University of New Mexico and Troy State.

Dan proved himself as a crime fighter every step of the way while serving as a patrol officer.  He was selected to serve on the first SWAT team of Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Department, assigned to Internal Affairs, was elected as President of the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Officers’ Association. Dan was also assigned to the first substation in the East Mountains on Highway North 14.  Dan was promoted to Sergeant and was assigned to the Forest Service unit patrolling the East Mountains.  He was later assigned back to Internal Affairs as the supervisor of that unit.  Dan was also selected to lead the Narcotics unit working undercover where he received his promotion to Lieutenant.  He was selected to be the Assistant Commander of Criminal Investigations and was promoted to Captain, then later selected to become the Commander of Criminal Investigations.

Dan holds the Executive certification; the highest certification issued by the State of New Mexico.  His long list of leadership successes began with his service in the United States Air Force, enlisting at the age of 17 receiving an honorable discharge as a Sergeant. He served 21 distinguished years with the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Department.  Dan applied for and was selected as Chief of Public Safety for the city of Mary Esther, Florida serving four years and leaving with a record of honorable service.  In 2006 Dan was hired by the Albuquerque Police Department where he served as a sworn officer through 2008.  In 2008 he was accepted into the Albuquerque Police Department Reserve Program to which he is still a member.

White previously served as head of the New Mexico Department of Public Safety under former governor Gary Johnson.

White will take over his new position when Berry is sworn in on December 1.