Cherokee County, AL elected officials: county commissioners, sheriff, school board and cities
Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Cherokee County: 12 seats on 7 elected bodies. 5 seats were on the November 3, 2026 ballot; they update once the county certifies its results.
County Commission
Cherokee County Commission
Each member is elected by the voters of their district.
The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 10 local governments in Cherokee County. This page lists the ones whose offices are elected.
Kind of government
Census count (2022)
Listed on this page
County government
1
1
Cities, towns, villages and townships
5
0
School districts (school boards)
1
1
Special districts (elected boards)
3
0
Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments: Government Units Listing (census.gov).
About these counts
The Census Bureau counts every independent local government once, in the county it assigns it to: the one it mostly serves or where it's based. A city or district that crosses county lines is counted in only one county, so it may be listed on this page but counted elsewhere, or the other way around. Many special districts, such as housing authorities, have appointed boards, and some places have more than one elected body, so the two columns measure different things. School systems run by a county, city or the state aren't counted as separate governments, though their boards may be listed here; in some states the Bureau counts community or state colleges as school districts. The counts are as of 2022.
Who lives in Cherokee County
25,443people
47.5median ageU.S.: 38.9
$53,863 household incomeU.S.: $80,734
14.8%below the U.S.: 12.5%
16.5%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%
$179,700median home valueU.S.: $332,700
3.9%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%
2%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%
7.2%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%
7.2%U.S.: 8.4%
40.1%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%
28.6%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%
Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 1.8% · White 90.4% · Black 3.8% · Asian 0.2% · Other or more than one race 3.8% (Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race; the other groups are non-Hispanic.)
Census Bureau, 2020–2024 5-year estimates (data.census.gov).
About these figures
The American Community Survey asks about 3.5 million households a year about who lives there, their work, income, schooling and housing. The 5-year estimates pool 2020–2024 answers so that every county and district has enough of them. They're estimates with a (larger for smaller places), and they're different from the once-a-decade census count. "Median" means half are above and half below. Household income is before taxes and includes everyone in the household. The unemployment share here is the survey's five-year average, so it differs from the monthly rate in the BLS jobs report. Race and Hispanic origin are as people describe themselves.
Health insurance means any coverage, private or public (such as Medicaid or Medicare), when people answered; the share is of everyone except people on active military duty and people living in institutions such as prisons and nursing homes. The housing shares are of renting households, and of homeowners with a mortgage, for whom the Census Bureau can compute them (households with no income, or renters who pay no cash rent, are left out). Rent here is gross rent, rent plus utilities; owner costs include the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities and fees.
Jobs in Cherokee County
3.7%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 3.0%. Alabama: 3.7%.
387people unemployedSeptember 2026, preliminary.
9,974people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.
10,361in the September 2026, preliminary.
Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.
Every month, last two years
Month
Rate
Unemployed
Employed
Labor force
September 2026 (preliminary)
3.7%
387
9,974
10,361
August 2026
3.6%
371
9,944
10,315
July 2026
3.8%
395
9,935
10,330
June 2026
4.1%
426
10,065
10,491
May 2026
3.4%
356
10,129
10,485
April 2026
2.5%
259
10,174
10,433
March 2026
2.9%
299
10,146
10,445
February 2026
3.2%
333
10,129
10,462
January 2026
2.8%
297
10,169
10,466
December 2025
2.2%
232
10,430
10,662
November 2025
2.5%
269
10,360
10,629
October 2025
not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 2025
3.0%
320
10,263
10,583
August 2025
2.9%
306
10,116
10,422
July 2025
3.1%
329
10,189
10,518
June 2025
3.1%
328
10,319
10,647
May 2025
2.4%
260
10,398
10,658
April 2025
2.3%
238
10,330
10,568
March 2025
2.8%
293
10,236
10,529
February 2025
3.2%
332
10,175
10,507
January 2025
3.1%
324
10,172
10,496
December 2024
2.6%
281
10,386
10,667
November 2024
2.8%
300
10,286
10,586
October 2024
2.9%
305
10,166
10,471
Yearly averages
Year
Rate
Unemployed
Employed
Labor force
2025 (11 months)
2.8%
294
10,272
10,566
2024
3.0%
309
10,097
10,406
2023
2.6%
269
9,970
10,239
2022
2.5%
253
9,859
10,112
2021
2.9%
286
9,748
10,034
2020
5.7%
577
9,489
10,066
2019
3.4%
345
9,897
10,242
2018
3.9%
401
9,795
10,196
2017
4.6%
460
9,503
9,963
2016
5.6%
554
9,391
9,945
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, : BLS publishes county figures only that way, so they rise and fall with the seasons; compare a month with the same month a year earlier rather than with the month before. Alabama's figure above is on the same basis; seasonally adjusted, as in BLS's monthly state release, it was 3.5% in September 2026. The latest month is preliminary and is revised the next month, and BLS revises earlier years each spring. People are counted where they live. October 2025 wasn't collected during the 2025 federal government shutdown, so 2025's yearly average covers 11 months.
Crime reported in Cherokee County
285.0 per 100,0002024. Alabama: 372.9.
1,649.4 per 100,0002024. Alabama: 1,600.7.
0murders2024, 80 violent crimes in all.
2024 is the latest year with complete reporting here: at least one of the county's police agencies didn't send the FBI a full year of figures since, so later totals would be undercounts.
Earlier years
Year
Violent
Rate
Property
Rate
2024
80
285.0
463
1,649.4
2023
85
308.4
533
1,933.6
2022
72
265.3
563
2,074.1
2021
99
343.9
589
2,046.0
2020
95
336.5
521
1,845.5
2016
96
346.3
637
2,297.6
By police agency (5)
Agency
Year
Violent
Property
People served
Cherokee County Sheriff's Office
2025
73
241
19,553
Centre Police Department
2025
8
125
3,908
Collinsville Police Department
2024
3
22
2,067
Cedar Bluff Police Department
2024
8
17
1,918
Leesburg Police Department
2025
5
5
1,016
Crimes to the county's city and county police agencies (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A), per 100,000 people they serve. Years with incomplete reporting are left out. Crime in Alabama · the U.S.
Police staffing
2.28 per 1,000 residents2024, 5 agencies serving 28,070 people.
64sworn officers2024, full-time, as of October 31.
28civilian staff2024, full-time.
2024 is the latest year every agency here sent the FBI its staff count.
Agencies counted (5), 2024
Agency
Officers
Civilians
People served
Cherokee County Sheriff's Office
37
23
19,249
Centre Police Department
13
1
3,845
Collinsville Police Department
5
4
2,067
Leesburg Police Department
5
0
991
Cedar Bluff Police Department
4
0
1,918
Earlier years
Year
Officers
Per 1,000
Civilians
Agencies
2024
64
2.28
28
5
2023
61
2.21
24
5
2022
59
2.17
31
5
2021
57
1.98
29
5
2020
60
2.13
7
5
2018
53
1.91
6
5
Full-time employees of the county's city police departments and sheriff's office, as each reported them to the FBI (Uniform Crime Reporting, Law Enforcement Employees), per 1,000 people in the areas those agencies serve (the FBI's population figures). A year is shown only when every one of these agencies sent a count; a count under half or over double the agency's own counts in nearby years is treated as not sent. Towns policed under contract by another agency are counted through that agency. State police, campus and other agencies aren't included. Sheriffs' offices often also run the county jail and courthouse security, so their staff counts include those jobs.
Quick answers
Who is the Cherokee County Circuit Clerk?
Dwayne Amos is the Circuit Clerk of Cherokee County, Alabama.
Who is the Cherokee County Coroner?
Paul McDonald is the Coroner of Cherokee County, Alabama. The seat was on the November 3, 2026 ballot; the count isn't certified yet.
Who is the Cherokee County Judge of Probate?
Tim Burgess is the Judge of Probate of Cherokee County, Alabama.
Who is the Cherokee County Sheriff?
Jeff Shaver is the Sheriff of Cherokee County, Alabama. The seat was on the November 3, 2026 ballot; the count isn't certified yet.
Who are the Cherokee County commissioners?
Randy Jones (District 1); Roger D. Nichols (District 2); Ronnie Shaw (District 3); Carlton "Bubba" Teague (District 4).
Who is on the Cherokee County School Board?
Lisa Chandler (Board of Education Member, District 1); Lisa McKissick (Board of Education Member, District 2); Randall Davis (Board of Education Member, Place 5); Mike Welsh (Superintendent of Education).
What is the population of Cherokee County?
About 25,443 people, with a median age of 47.5; the median household income is $53,863 and 14.8% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Cherokee County?
3.7% in September 2026 (preliminary): 387 people unemployed in a labor force of 10,361, against 3.0% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Cherokee County?
10 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 5 municipal, 1 school district and 3 special district governments.
Officeholders as of November 7, 2026, from the Alabama Secretary of State's County Official Lookup, and for the county commission, other county officers and the county board of education, the county's or the county school system's own website (matched to the seat each person won in the SOS's results of its last general election); each name links to its source. Officials change between elections (appointments, resignations), and the body's own website is the authority. Party is shown only for offices elected on a partisan ballot.
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