HERKIMER COUNTY, N.Y. -- They both have experience and a passion for keeping Herkimer County safe.
"I have never had a single acquittal of any of the cases that I have tried, felony-level cases, since I've been in the District Attorney office," said Herkimer County District Attorney Jeff Carpenter.
"There are some very bad people who are put back in our community and I don't understand it," challenger Mike Daley said.
Daley was the county's District Attorney for nearly a decade.
"I started out in Oneida County in the district attorney's office," said Daley. "I worked for a while with the Organized Crime Task Force, did a few trials for them, and then went back to the Oneida County D.A.'s office. Then in '92, [I] ran for, and was elected as, Herkimer County District Attorney."
Daley grew up in Maine. Carpenter grew up in Herkimer County.
"I'm from Herkimer County originally," said Carpenter. "This is where I live, where I'm raising my children, and so I have a vested interest in making sure this community stays as safe as it possibly can."
Carpenter said the crime rate has gone down since he took over the position.
"When you look at Herkimer County and then you look at the state, the nation, and the world, certainly it's not getting any safer out there, but it is in Herkimer County. We're doing something right here, and I want to continue doing that," said Carpenter.
But Daley feels more should be done.
"There's a lot of concerns, but they all center around him not doing his job," said Daley or Carpenter. "When you plea bargain every single case, you give the entire advantage to the defendant."