Deschutes County Sheriff Kent van der Kamp in his office. (Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin)

The community effort to recall Deschutes County Sheriff Kent van der Kamp says it will no longer file a recall petition now that Van der Kamp has given the county official notice of his resignation, effective July 31.

“The Recall Committee maintains concerned about Kent van der Kamp actively serving as sheriff until July 31, and understands from county officials his resignation is now legally binding. Although the recall of Kent van der Kamp as sheriff has been unconventional and short-lived thus far, the recall effort is successful,” said sheriff’s office Sgt. Thomas Lilienthal.

Van der Kamp claims he was unaware of the recall effort, despite emailing the Deschutes County Commission of his resignation mere minutes after the community effort launched its campaign on June 23.

At the time, van der Kamp characterized the effort as “foolish” given he had informally told county officials of his plans retire by the end of August, but some community members were skeptical. When the effort was first announced, Lilienthal characterized it as a “failsafe” in case other efforts to remove Van der Kamp were unsuccessful.

Frustration surrounding the embattled sheriff first emerged in early April after the Deschutes County District Attorney’s office released a report revealing that, in addition to supplying false documents to Oregon State Police, van der Kamp lied while under oath about his educational history during criminal cases. Since then there have been widespread calls for van der Kamp’s resignation.

Now that the seat is legally vacant, the Deschutes County Commission must appoint an interim sheriff until the next election cycle in 2026. While that appointment doesn’t necessarily need to be made before van der Kamp leaves on July 31, the commissioners say that they are eager to hasten what could be a tumultuous transition given the strained culture inside the sheriff’s office.

As part of the transition process, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Employee Association will hold an unofficial panel for sheriff applicants at 6:30 p.m. July 7 — the same day the recall effort would have filed its petition — at the Bend Elks Lodge. Commissioners Phil Chang and Patti Adair will be at the event, and the public is encouraged to attend. The list of applicants has not yet been finalized, said union President Danny Graham.

In addition to the panel, the county commission is asking candidates to submit a written statement by July 11 in addition to their application.