Hazard mayor, Perry County sheriff candidates face voters at forum

The sharpest divide at the Perry County Public Library forum was not between personalities but between the two jobs on the ballot: one candidate will steer Hazard city government, and the other will shape sheriff’s office priorities for the county. That made the April 23 gathering more than a routine campaign stop. It put the election’s most immediate concerns, public safety, city services and the direction of the county seat, in front of voters with the May 19 primary closing in.

The forum brought together candidates for Hazard mayor and Perry County sheriff, including Donald "Happy" Mobelini and Scott Alexander, at a moment when local voters were making late decisions after the April 20 registration deadline passed. The January 9 filing deadline had already locked in the field, leaving little time for undecided residents to sort through the choices before Election Day. For a county where the sheriff’s office is headed by Sheriff Joseph Engle and Hazard remains the center of county government, the stakes were plain: the outcome will affect policing, administration and how city hall and the courthouse interact.

The setting added to the impact. The Perry County Public Library’s meeting rooms are ADA compliant, making the library a practical venue for a public forum meant to be open to as many residents as possible. WSGS and Invision Hazard broadcast the event live, with support from local businesses, widening access beyond the people in the room. In a county as spread out as Perry County, that mattered for voters in Hazard, Vicco, Buckhorn and Chavies who wanted to hear candidates answer the same questions in the same place.

Hazard’s size also explains why the forum drew attention well beyond the city limits. The city was founded in 1884 and serves as the county seat of Perry County, which had a population of 28,473 in the 2020 census and an estimated 26,555 residents in 2025. Hazard itself had 5,263 residents in 2020. In a place that small, a city race and a sheriff’s race can shape daily life quickly, from how streets are managed to how safely people feel after dark.

The forum fit a familiar local pattern as well. Invision Hazard has previously helped organize a candidate forum as one of its early community activities, underscoring how civic groups, radio and local businesses have worked together to keep Perry County voters connected to the people seeking office. With the primary just days away, the library event gave residents one last clear look at who wants to lead Hazard and who wants to run county law enforcement.