The rank and file of the Sheriff’s Department have made their choice known.

The San Juan County Deputy Sheriffs Guild Wednesday endorsed deputy Ron Krebs and his candidacy for San Juan County sheriff.

An eight-year veteran of the local force and first-time sheriff’s candidate, Krebs is challenging the incumbent, Sheriff Rob Nou, a former department deputy elected to a first term in office in 2010.

The Guild, which represents the department’s deputies, detectives, sergeants, dispatch and corrections staff, 28 members in all, voted in overwhelming numbers to endorse Krebs, following a questions-and-answer forum with each candidate Monday, Sept. 15.

A “small fraction” of guild members chose to abstain from the vote, including Krebs, according to a Sept. 17 guild press release. The rest of the members voted in favor of Krebs.

“We, the Guild, believe Ron Krebs will bring back community policing, citizen responsiveness, honesty and integrity, communication and moral into the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office,” a Guild press release said.

According to the guild, questions fielded by the two candidates involved missing and outdated policy and procedures, poor morale, multiple problems with patrol boats, dispatch safety and security concerns, communication issues, budget, weak relations within other county entities, fire and EMS providers, inactive reserve program and physical fitness for duty.

The Sheriff oversees a 35-person department and yearly budget of $4.9 million, including $2.7 million for department operations, $1 million for dispatch, $800,00 for Emergency Management and nearly $400,000 for the jail. At full staffing, the department consists of 21 deputies, detectives and field corrections officers, nine dispatch employees, and four other employees.

Krebs moved to the San Juans and joined the department in 2006. A Marine Corps veteran, he is a past sheriff’s guild president, department representative on the Washington Council of Police and Sheriff’s, and is a field training officer and boater safety instructor.

A former Oregon police chief who joined the department as a deputy in 2008, Nou drew the endorsement of eight members of the guild in the five-candidate 2010 sheriff’s race. He soared into the office on the heels of a landslide victory in the general election, collecting 66 percent of votes cast in that two-way finale.

An elected, non-partisan position, the sheriff earns an annual salary of $103,595.