An embattled northeastern Montana sheriff who resigned less than two months ahead of an election will be replaced by the subordinate he was running against.

The Billings Gazette reports county commissioners chose Roosevelt County Sheriff's Deputy Jason Frederick for the position on Tuesday. He will replace two-term Sheriff Freedom Crawford when his resignation goes into effect Oct. 1.

In June, Crawford lost a primary vote to Frederick by a huge margin and the two were to face off again in November. Frederick had been demoted by Crawford from undersheriff to deputy shortly after announcing his candidacy.

Crawford has given no explanation for his resignation.

He had most recently made headlines when police found him sleeping on a Wolf Point sidewalk and suspected he was intoxicated. He was not cited.

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