MONROE - Gov. Scott Walker has appointed Lt. Mark Rohloff of the Monroe Police Department as sheriff of Green County.

Rohloff assumes the position Monday, Nov. 11, filling the vacancy left by the resignation of elected sheriff Jeff Skatrud.

Skatrud announced his early retirement from the post in late July and left Sept. 2 to pursue an unspecified part-time job opportunity. When a sheriff leaves before the end of a four-year term, the governor is tasked with appointing a replacement to serve the remainder of the term.

Rohloff will complete the term ending Jan. 5, 2015. The post goes up for election next fall.

The governor passed up Green County Chief Deputy Richard Wyttenbach for the appointment, despite Skatrud's stated hope before he left that his second-in-command would get the appointment.

Rohloff, Wyttenbach and Sgt. Jay Wood of the Rock County Sheriff's Department were the three candidates interviewed for the job, out of an applicant pool of nine, according to Tom Evenson, press secretary for Gov. Walker.

Rohloff said he applied for the position only after learning that "nobody local was still in the running," when the application deadline was extended in early October.

"I did not want to have a competition with the chief deputy," he said, adding that he's worked with Wyttenbach for more than 20 years. "He's a good man."

It isn't clear what criteria the governor's office uses to evaluate applicants for the sheriff's post. No unique requirements were outlined in the job posting, and Evenson has ignored repeated questions about the appointment process.

Rohloff, 55, has worked almost 35 years in law enforcement in Green County. A native of Janesville, he went after high school into the U.S. Air Force and then the Wisconsin National Guard.

He started his career at the Brodhead Police Department in 1979, moving to the Janesville Police Department in 1986.

He's been with the Monroe Police Department since 1992, rising over the years to second-in-command and the management of its daily operations.

"I have a longstanding professional relationship with the sheriff's department and anticipate little difficulty assuming my new position there," he said in a statement from the governor's office announcing the appointment Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Rohloff lives in Monroe with his wife of 34 years, Suzanne. They have six children.