(WENY) - Republican Legislator Dennis Mullen announced his candidacy for Sheriff of Tioga County, New York.

Mullen is currently serving his third term as legislator in district five which covers the Waverly/Barton area.

He's a retired state trooper and a state police academy training officer in which he's trained over 700 state troopers. Mullen also served as the chief of police in Painted Post from 2014 to 2017.

In a press release, Mullen says his number one responsibility as sheriff is the safety of all deputies.