Erie County Sheriff John Garcia’s signed oath card is not on file with the county clerk, as required by law. So is he still the sheriff? Can he receive a paycheck? Or is this all political gamesmanship?

Erie County Sheriff John Garcia. Photo: WKBW 7 News.

Erie County Sheriff John Garcia cruised to victory at the polls last year, facing no opponents in the primary or general elections. However, he may have neglected a critical step to beginning his second term: filing an oath of office with the county clerk.

The clerk’s office confirmed it has no current oaths of office on file for the sheriff or his second in command, Undersheriff Bill Cooley, and no record of receiving them.

Garcia, through a spokesperson, claimed his office had sent the necessary documents through the county’s intra-office mail and were “surprised” to learn the clerk didn’t have them on file.

Many public officials in New York, and all elected officials, are required by state law to file oaths of office within 30 days of the beginning of their term or appointment. County officials like Garcia file their oaths with the county clerk’s office. 

For many, failure to do so results automatically in removal from office. 

In Garcia’s case, it would mean he has been collecting a paycheck to which he’s not entitled for the past three-and-a-half months. It would also mean he’s been discharging his duties as sheriff without legal authority to do so, according to state law. 

Erie County Executive Poloncarz said his office is “reviewing the matter,” which could have serious consequences — or could be a game of gotcha between Democrats and Republicans.

As of Monday afternoon, the county clerk’s electronic records showed no record of oath cards filed by Garcia or Cooley. Michael Cecchini, a spokesman for Erie County Clerk Mickey Kearns, confirmed the office had no oath cards on file for either man and no record of receiving them. 

According to Chris Horvatits, the sheriff’s spokesperson, the sheriff and undersheriff signed oath cards on Jan. 5 and sent the originals “via the county’s mail system” to the clerk’s office. He said Garcia learned from Erie County Attorney Jeremy Toth that the clerk did not have the documents on file and forwarded a copy to Toth’s office.

Peter Anderson, a Poloncarz spokesperson, would not confirm whether the county attorney had received copies of the signed oath cards, waving off the question as “not relevant.”

“This seems like an issue between the Sheriff and the Clerk to find out what happened there,” Anderson wrote in an email. “The County Attorney isn’t the person who files these oath cards, it’s the Clerk.”

Horvatits, via email, provided copies of the signed and dated oath cards to Investigative Post, but no evidence that they’d been filed with the clerk, as state law requires. He insisted the sheriff “met his obligation when the original oath cards were sent to the County Clerk’s Office.”

Cecchini, from the clerk’s office, noted that most county officials file oaths of office in person and receive a receipt as evidence that they’ve done so.

None of the county’s other elected officials have had any trouble filing their oaths.

All 11 county legislators began new terms in January, and all filed their oaths of office, according to the county clerk’s records.

Michael Keane, the district attorney, filed his oath after winning election in 2024. Poloncarz filed an oath after winning his fourth term in 2023. Mickey Kearns, the county clerk, filed his oath after he was last reelected in 2022.

Both Garcia and Cooley successfully filed oaths in January 2022, at the beginning of Garcia’s first term, according to clerk’s records.

Emailed copy of Garcia’s oath card, dated Jan. 5, 2026 and notarized.

The consequences of failing to file an oath of office can be severe. A “refusal or neglect to file” results in vacancy, according to the state’s public officers law and court rulings.

“No excuses,” according to a 1997 article in the New York State Bar Journal. “No exceptions.”

In fact, the state law governing counties carves out an exception for county clerks, sheriffs and district attorneys.  Those officials aren’t automatically booted from office when they fail to file their oaths. However, the law says they “shall not perform any duties of the office, nor be entitled to any compensation” until they do, according to the law.

Garcia’s salary is $150,000 per year, meaning he’s collected more than $40,000 in paychecks since January.

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Erie County Comptroller Kevin Hardwick, who oversees the county payroll — and whose oath card is current, according to clerk’s records — declined to speculate on the situation.

“I’m not a lawyer and I don’t play one on TV, so I will defer to the real lawyers on the process here,” he said. 

Poloncarz said in a statement that it’s unclear what the consequences for Garcia could be.

“There are varying interpretations about whether an office is deemed vacant, vacant but a holdover exists, or the office is not deemed vacant, but the office holder should not have been paid depending on the office and law applied,” he said. 

“Ultimately, a decision of a New York court of law may be required to confirm the correct course of action in this matter.”

Poloncarz, a Democrat, has said he will not seek a fifth term as county executive next year. Garcia is on the short list of possible Republican candidates to succeed him. So is Kearns, the county clerk. Hardwick is a Democratic contender for the seat.

posted 1 hour ago – April 20, 2026