Times staff writersDec. 24, 2020
Pasco Sheriff Chris Nocco was once asked under oath how he had landed two high-level posts in state government.
âIt was the connections that I had made,â he said bluntly.
âI mean, you didn't have to like go and interview along with a hundred other people to get the job or anything?â an attorney pressed.
âNo, maâam,â he said.
Later that month, he told a reporter: âIâm very blessed to have friends that are in high offices.â
Today, Nocco himself is in a high place. A force in local GOP politics, he has twice been elected sheriff without opposition â something that hadnât happened in Pasco County since World War II. His wife is one of the stateâs most prominent Republican fundraisers. Their ties have reached the highest levels of government, including President Donald Trumpâs administration.