San Mateo County begins a new law enforcement era today with the naming of new Sheriff Kenneth Binder. Binder replaces Sheriff Christina Corpus, whose two-year tenure was rife with controversy, and who retired last month after county supervisors voted to remove her.

Kenneth Binder, who is currently the interim chief of police in Gilroy and was the former undersheriff in Santa Clara County, was selected Wednesday from a group of three finalist candidates by the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors to become the new sheriff of the county. Binder will serve out the remainder of Corpus's term, which runs until 2029, before he faces reelection.

During an interview last week, per NBC Bay Area, Binder told the board, "One of the first things I need to do when I come in, if the board appoints me, would be to stabilize the organization. They haven't had solid leadership for a period, and coming in, I would want to have someone that is that trustworthy, respected by the rank and file, and that knows the organization inside and out."

Binder pledged to bring back former Undersheriff Chris Hsuing, who abruptly resigned in June 2024, as well as former Assistant Sheriff Ryan Monaghan, whom Corpus tried to fire in an act that was seen as retaliation over the investigation that was launched into her professional conduct.

Binder became the interim police chief in Gilroy back in June, after retiring from the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office in 2024. He briefly served as acting sheriff of Santa Clara County in 2022, after former Sheriff Laurie Smith chose to retire early two days before she was found guilty of corruption and misconduct by a civil grand jury. He spent a total of 26 years working for the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office.

While the board initially indicated it might hold a special election for the sheriff position, they opted instead to make a long-term appointment, in the name of stability and, probably, cost saving — given that they already spent sizable sums this year holding a special election to endorse Corpus's removal, and funding her legal team through a 10-day administrative hearing process in August.

33-year SFPD veteran and former Assistant Chief of Police David Lazar was also among the three finalist candidates for the job, but was not selected today. As we noted last week, Lazar's name has been floated as a potential successor to Bill Scott as chief in San Francisco — and the SF Police Commission is expected to announce its finalists for that position later today, following a nationwide search process.

Previously: San Mateo County Reveals Seven Candidates for New Sheriff, Three are Current or Former SFPD Cops

Photo via Santa Clara County/Facebook