Alex Pruismann talks with his daughter Sunnie as he learns the results of Tuesday's primary election. Pruismann won the GOP primary for Hamilton County sheriff. His daughters Elsie, left, and Lovie react.

Alex Pruismann, the Hamilton County deputy sheriff who campaigned vigorously to win the county’s top law enforcement position, succeeded Tuesday night.

In the Republican primary, Pruismann topped his fellow GOP opponent David Turpen, with a tally of 867 — or 77.62 percent of the vote.

Turpen got 250 votes — or 22.38 percent of the vote.

With 100 percent of Hamilton County’s precincts reporting, 12.28 percent of the registered voters cast ballots.

The only local contested race was that of sheriff. A total of 1,117 votes were cast in that primary, according to numbers released by the Hamilton County Auditor’s Office late Tuesday night.

“I am excited. Overjoyed. But most of all humbled that the citizens of Hamilton County obviously knew what they wanted,” Pruismann said Tuesday after learning the results. “I hope I can live up to their expectations, but again, I’m just humbled.”

He added, “The support I’ve had this whole time has been overwhelming. I just can’t thank them enough.”

Because there are no other announced candidates at this time, the winner of Tuesday’s primary will likely become Hamilton County sheriff. However, that won’t be official until the results of the general election in November.

“It’s just a waiting game to see if anybody gets nominated on their party’s ticket,” Pruismann said. “It’s kind of a waiting game. But right now I’m just concentrating on tonight and how overjoyed I am about the results.”

Pruismann, 36, is in his 14th year of law enforcement. He lives in Blairsburg.

“I grew up in Blairsburg and have been a resident of Hamilton County my whole life,” he said.

“In 2010 I graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in communications and that led me to law enforcement and being hired with the Iowa Falls Police Department in 2010 where I was able to hone my skills by dealing with many people, situations and calls everyday.

“The day I entered law enforcement, I had a goal of working for Hamilton County and helping make it the safest it can be,” Pruismann said.

The sheriff’s position is a complex one that includes not only law enforcement but department management. Pruismann said his master’s degree in public administration with a police emphasis from Dordt University uniquely qualifies him to step into the role.

“This degree and experience has led me to want to help lead the Hamilton County Sheriff’s (Office) and make it the best it could possibly be, in every facet of the profession.”

Asked if he saw ways to improve the sheriff’s office service, he said yes.

“With law enforcement changing daily, I would like to see more dedicated responsibilities to the deputies in the sheriff’s office. As an example, this means a dedicated investigator in order to lead investigations that may take several resources and a lot of time. Having a dedicated deputy in charge of this will allow for maximizing resources of all deputies and having someone stay on top of the ever-changing law that could then relay that on to others.

“I would also want to get a K9 program established in Hamilton County. Surrounding counties, as well as WCPD (Webster City Police Department) has a K9 and they are wonderful,” he said. “I see many benefits to establishing a Hamilton County K9 program.”

Pruismann said he embraces the importance of the sheriff’s position.

“The most important aspect of being the sheriff is being a person that the people of Hamilton County can be proud of and that will lead Hamilton County law enforcement forward. It is someone that brings true safety to the citizens and a sense of calming in times of turmoil or negativity. The sheriff should be looked at as someone who will show up in times of need, and will treat everyone with respect. The sheriff should be someone who will stand up for what’s right, no matter the circumstances,” he said.

“I will wholeheartedly be that person.”