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NEW ORLEANS – The race for St. Tammany Parish Sheriff was underway tonight and WGNO attended candidate, Tim Lentz’s election watch party.

Lentz began the night feeling “cautiously optimistic” according to collage, Rio Olend. However, as the night progressed, it was clear that his opponent, Randy Smith established a clear lead.

Around 9:30 PM, it was announced that Tim Lentz lost to Randy Smith by a 14 point spread. Shortly after, Lentz gave an emotional concession speech.

“The voters have spoken. We have to respect the process– unfortunately, not the outcome that we wanted. We’ve ran a good, clean campaign” Lentz told WGNO. “We wish sheriff smith the best in his next four years but the voters have spoken and we respect it.”

Tim Lentz secured 43 percent of the votes but fell short to Smith’s 57 percent. Lentz says he’ll continue to serve the St. Tammany community moving forward. When asked if he’d run again for St. Tammany Parish Sheriff, his answer: “Let’s just focus on getting through tonight.”