Huffer To Seek County Coroner JobPlain Township Trustee Tyler Huffer announced Tuesday he will be seeking the county coroner position.
He filed his declaration of candidacy with Kosciusko Republican Party Central Committee Chairman Mike Ragan Tuesday afternoon.
“I’ve always been interested in the position, and I’ve had a lot of people ask me to run for it after Tony won the primary. People have been asking and I’ve had a lot of support so far,” Huffer, 33, said in an interview.
Current coroner Tony Ciriello resigned effective Dec. 31 after winning the Republican primary and general election this year for the Kosciusko County Council District 3 seat. A Republican caucus for the coroner and county treasurer has been set for 6 p.m. Dec. 1 in the old courtroom of the old county courthouse. There are two years left in Ciriello’s current term as coroner.
As for Huffer’s background, he said he is a licensed paramedic since 2011 and was a flight paramedic at Parkview Samaritan.
Born and raised in Kosciusko County, he graduated from Warsaw Community High School in 2008 and attended IUPUI.
He works at a local funeral home, serving in several roles. “Having that compassion and respect for the deceased, along with helping the family members out, is, I think, a huge asset to have in this position,” Huffer said.
Working at the funeral home, he has interacted with the deputy coroners on-scene and at the coroner’s office. He also has interacted with and has close relationships with local fire and law enforcement departments and the prosecutor’s office, he said.
Being the current Plain Township trustee, Huffer said having that budgeting background is also a very good asset to have for the coroner’s office.
Huffer has served as the elected Plain 4 precinct committeeman for the Republican Party. He served on the Chapman Lake Conservation Association board for more than eight years and is a member of the Warsaw Noon Optimist Club.
If he is elected as coroner in the caucus, Huffer plans to attend February’s Medicolegal Death Investigator class with other newly elected coroners and deputy coroners from across the state.
Eligible members of the caucus are Republican precinct committee members who have served continously from 30 days prior to the date of the commencement of the caucus.
The Kosciusko County treasurer and coroner will be elected by secret ballot of the majority of the members of the voting caucus to fill the vacancies in the offices. Candidates must reside in Kosciusko County and be a Republican in good standing.
Declarations of candidacy are available at the office of the Kosciusko County clerk of the Circuit Court, 121 N. Lake St., Warsaw, and must be filed with Ragan no later than 72 hours prior to the commencement of the caucus. Ragan’s phone number is 574-265-1430 and email is mragan@sprintmail.com.
Eligible candidates will be allowed a maximum of 3 minutes to address the voting caucus.
