Politico She Wants to Fix One of Louisiana’s Deadliest Jails. She Needs to Beat the Sheriff First. Michael Zoorob, a postdoctoral researcher at Northeastern University, found in an analysis that sheriffs have an incumbency advantage that “far exceeds that of other local offices” such as city councilor, state representative or mayor. Much of this advantage, Zoorob wrote, comes from a sheriff’s nearly unchecked discretion, which can include the ability to hire and fire employees […]