Benton County Sheriff
Benton County, Minnesota
My vote power
High
Election date
November 3, 2026 · General election
How do we calculate my vote power?
What determines the vote power rating: Representation: how much weight one vote carries here compared with a statewide vote — the smaller the district, the more each vote counts. Decisiveness: how likely this race is to be close, based on past results or current analyst ratings, plus whether more candidates are running than there are seats.
Representation: High · 72 out of 100
This district is a small slice of its state, so each vote here carries much more weight than a vote in a statewide race. About 41,593 people live here.
Show the representation math
score = 50 + 50 × ln(state population ÷ this district's) ÷ ln(50,000) = 50 + 50 × ln(5,739,445 ÷ 41,593) ÷ ln(50,000) = 72.77, measured against a statewide vote in MN (grades: 66+ high, 55+ above average, 33+ average, otherwise low; a statewide race is the 50 baseline)
Decisiveness: Unknown
No analyst ratings or past results for this contest yet.
High representation → My vote power: High.
Some data is missing, so this rating is based on partial information and capped at "High".
About this office
- Running police patrols and deputies in the county
- Running the county jail
- Carrying out evictions, warrants, and other court orders
Affects: Immigration, Public Safety and Crime Control, Gun Control,
Candidates
Nonpartisan
Jay Dingmann is a senior sergeant with the Benton County Sheriff's Office, where he has worked for 30 years, and commands the Stearns-Benton SWAT team. He says he will focus on supporting deputies and staff and on preparing for new public safety threats.
Nonpartisan
As of September 2026, we found no public information about Joel M Schmidt's job, background, or goals.
Sources: electionresultsfiles.sos.mn.gov · bentoncountymn.gov