Independent local reporting for Harrison County  
Vol. 1 · No. 1
The Harrison Independent
Harrison County
Opinion

Why Are Criminal Organizations Involved in Our County Politics?

Organized crime brings something disorganized voters cannot: a bloc. Until a third or fourth candidate breaks that arrangement, the TRF and Deathwatch will keep riding on our political extras.

Opinion. This piece is the view of its author, not of The Harrison Independent. The author is Managing Editor of The Jamestown Times, a separate outlet whose reporting The Independent has covered. We publish outside contributors who argue in good faith, and we welcome responses.

The columned facade of Harrison County Hall, seen through haze.
Harrison County Hall. Credit: The Harrison Independent

This opinion piece will briefly and simply explain why criminal organizations are involved in County politics, and how we should address this dirty reality.

Criminal organizations such as The Red Front, Deathwatch, the Mafia (Ro-Mob), even the Cartel, and others I haven’t mentioned, play a role in County politics.

They have a large, organized voter base compared to the typically disorganized public voters. Most of them are residents who have the right to vote.

Of course, politicians need these votes. On the other hand, criminal organizations will choose candidates who will benefit them most.

Therefore, political candidates will ask one of the criminal organizations to vote for them. Yes, we won’t turn a blind eye to this. In fact, as reported by FTN on August 26, 2026, it was reported that the TRF endorsed bob_govv for County Executive, along with Maexemillian and OttoPedina.

Of course, this doesn’t stop at Election Day. Criminal organizations still target and strive to ensure their elected candidates implement policies that benefit them.

First, how will the CE appoint its members to department heads?

The critical positions that criminal organizations are concerned about: the District Attorney position and the heads of law enforcement and the military. Criminal organizations will not risk prosecution or arrest during their operations. They need individuals who will have minimal conflict with them.

If the CE accepts the recommendation of its criminal organization constituents to appoint these positions, the result will be slow law enforcement and corruption in the County’s prosecution of organized crime.

If the CE does not accept the recommendation, the CE will certainly not be re-elected by his criminal organization constituent. The result will be the CE losing the support of its largest constituents.

Either way, this yes-or-no dilemma will face the CE, leaving only the rational choice: taking the politically correct path — whichever decision carries the least risk.

Second, even if these individuals are elected and performing their County duties, the criminal organization will still have a political stake. They must ensure that the people the CE chooses as department heads will consistently benefit them, or at least keep conflict to a minimum.

On the other hand, the CE must also maintain political stability so that all its allies remain supportive. A single rift could lead to a political rift, forcing the CE to resort to the ultimate solution: seeking recommendations from criminal organizations to find people to support it.

Even as Bob gradually loses his political allies, he still needs the opinion of his largest constituent, none other than the TRF, to fix the political configuration and play with the public narrative.

With Bob’s recall by his political rival, Talaxn, and Bob’s sentiments toward the Greyskins, we can see who will support whom.

Talaxn won’t be completely immune from this pattern either. Despite Talaxn publicly claiming not to be supported by Deathwatch, Deathwatch is the only criminal organization with a large, organized voter base that will directly oppose Bob. The recall is still in its 80-signature phase, and Talaxn certainly needs that support.

In closing, I suggest that a third or fourth candidate should contest against both Bob and Talaxn.

We must break the narrative together, because both the TRF and Deathwatch will be riding on the coattails of our political extras.
Fooglesed

Fooglesed

Reporter · Contributor

I am Managing-Editor in The Jamestown Times. I fight for the marginalized people.