St. Mary Parish Sheriff Blaise Smith tells KQKI News that he will not seek re-election in 2023. He has been battling health issues since earlier in the year. He said he does intend to serve the remainder of his current term which will end in 2024.
Smith was elected as St. Mary Parish Sheriff in the December 2018 special election. He served as the elected interim Sheriff from December of 2018 and elected to a full term in November 2019.
On September 6, Smith released the following statement to KQKI News regarding his health condition, “First and foremost, I’d like to thank everyone for their continued prayers, good wishes, kind words, and support. Over the past few months, I have been in the hospital fighting an undiagnosed illness. There have been complications on my road to recovery, but I am now at home resting and continuing my rehabilitation. In my absence, the men and women of the SMPSO have done an exemplary job in ensuring all functions of the Sheriff’s Office have operated as normal.
Regarding my return to work, it will coincide with my improved health.”